not beta'd; Standard disclaimer applies

Science doesn't lie, Chapter 10, Superlatives; Children behave

When Tim finally returned, it was just Tony and Ziva in the bullpen. As soon as the younger man was seated at his desk, Tony pounced.

"Is Gibbs the other parent? And if he isn't, what's going on with the two of you?" Tony demanded to know, standing in front of Tim's desk. He didn't like being in the dark, not knowing what was going on, never had. The fact that neither Gibbs or McGee was talking about it was making things worse. All he could remember was all the secrets his parents kept from him right before she passed away. He knew that this situation wasn't the same, but the fear of secrets ripping his life apart, that was real, and at times overwhelming.

All Tony knew for certain was that something was going on between them. Gibbs called McGee by his first name, something he rarely, if ever did. In fact, Other than the few times when Tim was injured, Tony couldn't remember that ever happening.

If his Probie and the boss were together, it could mean the end of their team.

He just wanted to know was if it was true, he did not want to be blindsided. Okay, so he wanted to know more than that, but that information would be a great start, anything else they could handle.

Tim decided not to answer. In fact, he wasn't even going to give Tony the satisfaction of reacting, especially since as soon as Tony opened his mouth everyone else on the floor went silent.

Tony growled in frustration. Why couldn't McGee just answer him? "I promise that I won't tell anyone. You can trust me."

"I thought I could trust Abby as well," Tim retorted.

"Oh, come on, Probie, tell us something."

"Hmm," Tim thought for a moment, as he leaned back in his chair giving the appearance of a carefree man. "How about I tell you that you were more accurate with your dig about science fiction than you thought?" Tim offered. "Science is nowhere close to creating a child from the DNA of two men."

"But Abby…mice," Tony muttered in confusion.

Tim raised an eyebrow, so he did manage to talk with Abby earlier. "They have attempted to do it with mice," he admitted, "But it didn't create a healthy, viable specimen. Abby believes what she wants to believe," he added. "She will, has worked the evidence hoping for a certain outcome. Remember her and the crop circles?" Tim reminded Tony about their case his first year on the team.

Tony began to smile as he remembered the joke he had played on Probie.

Tim nodded, "I see you do," he stated, not smiling.

"Probie," Tony began, stopping when Tim shook his head.

"What else should I tell you?" Tim asked, staring at his teammates. "Something personal, perhaps? Maybe about how my father hasn't even contacted me regarding his grandchildren yet? That I broke down in the hospital when I thought they might not survive? How nervous I was to hold them the first time? To take them home without a doctor, a nurse, or anyone else around in case something happened? How I wonder everyday how or even if I can do this? That I think I'm crazy to even attempt to raise two kids on my own?"

Tony and Ziva stared at Tim. His voice was barely above a whisper, yet they had no trouble hearing his words and the emotions behind them.

"God, I can't tell you how much I hope that today is just a dream; that I'll wake up to find that my best friends never betrayed my trust, that one of them was more concerned about being right then about me, my thoughts, my feelings, and my children? That my teammates didn't abandon me; how I wish that nothing that happened today was real."

Tim knew that Gibbs's decree of keeping silent about this wasn't a good thing. Not only had Tim overheard a couple of agents talking about how they heard Tony and Ziva discussing Abby's announcements, and how it impacted their own beliefs, but Tim also heard his two teammates discussing it. He wasn't surprised about the either one, really, but he had hoped that Tony and Ziva would have enough respect for him, or at least fear of Gibbs to refrain from talking where they could be overheard. What hurt the most was the fact that half his team seemed to believe it.

"Or maybe you want to know what I overheard today? About what my coworkers, my teammates think about me? What my, our coworkers think about my teammates' stance on this matter? Is that what you want to know?"

Tony paled, "Probie…" His voice trailed off since he didn't know what to say. He knew he hadn't been shy about discussing this with Ziva, but he hadn't planned on Tim, or anyone else, for that matter, overhearing his thoughts on the subject. He could only imagine what Tim learned or what he must be feeling.

"Yeah, that's what I thought," Tim said before turning to once more face his computer, not even noticing a few minutes later when his teammates vacated the bullpen. Since he was pretty sure this wasn't a dream, the next best thing was for this day to end. Something that couldn't happen fast enough.

"I actually expected you sooner, Jethro," Ducky commented when Gibbs silently entered autopsy.

"Lots to do,"

"Really?" Ducky replied skeptically as he looked at his friend. "I heard you forwarded your case to another team."

Gibbs shrugged, "None of them could remain focused on it. The victim and his family deserved better."

"And you were focused?"

Gibbs shrugged again as he hopped up on one of the tables. "Couldn't get them to stay focused, no matter how many times I reminded them about the case or that what Abby said was none of their business."

"Yes, well," Ducky nodded in sympathy, noticing that his last question hadn't been answered. "They received quite a shock this morning," he explained.

Gibbs groaned, "Ducky, McGee and I are not together and the twins aren't mine."

"Oh, I am well aware of that, it's quite obvious that the two of you haven't been close enough to have three month old twins, even if they were premature."

Gibbs frowned, "What the hell does that mean?" he barked.

Ducky looked taken aback at the other man's tone, "Jethro, I was agreeing with you."

"Yeah, but the way you made it sound…"

Ducky watched his friend closely, "What is bothering you, Jethro?"

Gibbs sighed as he looked around the room. "I'm beginning to understand why he's has been so angry and hostile today."

"Timothy?" Ducky asked in surprise. Usually Timothy was the most even-keeled of the team, excepting when Tony's pranks went too far. Of course, one could definitely agree that Abigail went too far. "Yes, well, I suppose I can understand the anger," he decided. "Still, it seems unlike Timothy to express it, especially to Abigail."

Gibbs snorted, "Me. He's not expressing it to Abby, but me," he stated before sharing his earlier confrontations with McGee.

Ducky nodded again. "It is probably a good thing that he is expressing it," Ducky declared, part of him curious about why Timothy didn't come down and talk with him about it. The team often used autopsy to let off steam or him as a sounding board. "It means that he feels secure enough to lash out at you; yes, there might be consequences, but he expects them to be fair, to be balanced against what is happening. Of course, it could also mean that it is you he is angry with and to hell with the consequences," Ducky added.

Gibbs snorted.

"Either way," Ducky continued ignoring the other man's reaction, "I can understand why he is angry. It has been a difficult morning for him," Ducky sympathized. "Not only would he be upset by Abigail's actions and what she put into play, but he has probably taken the majority of the questions regarding Abby's announcements."

Gibbs sighed, "I know. I just didn't really see that it was such a big deal. How could anyone who really knew us think that?"

Ducky met his eyes, "Because someone who they believed really knew the two of you and cared for you said it was true."

"Abby," Gibbs groaned as realization set in. Abby might be known for her quirkiness, but he couldn't imagine anyone acccusing her of out-right lying.

Ducky nodded, "If some random stranger had said that, or even Mr. Palmer, they would've been laughed at, but because it was Abby, and she was so confident about it…"

He nodded. "Well, that explains all the rumors I just heard."

Ducky raised an eyebrow, "Just heard?" he repeated. "Have you been under a rock all day?"

Gibbs frowned and looked away, "Apparently so," he admitted before explaining, "You know I never pay attention to scuttlebutt."

"So, it is these rumors that brought you down here?"

"Not really, there will always be rumors," Gibbs supplied, "It is more what everyone was thinking."

"Like what?" Ducky inquired. Wondering what he had heard that was affecting his friend like this.

"That I didn't like or respect McGee. That I'm not as close to him as I am to other members of my team, for starters."

"Hmm," was the only reply the older man gave.

"Duck?" Gibbs said in shock. The older man couldn't mean he agreed, could he?

The doctor looked at him as he debated how honest to be with the younger man.

"There was a reason why I didn't agree with the rumors," Ducky finally responded, "Even though I know you did care about him."

Gibbs stared at the ME, waiting for him to continue.

Ducky removed his glasses and began to clean the lenses as the second guessed himself. Perhaps this wasn't the time to get into that conversation. Replacing his glasses on his face, he started a new line of conversation. "I admit I do not know what Abigail is playing at."

Gibbs frowned, "What do you mean?"

Ducky gave him a look that seemed to say he should know the answer to that. "She must have a reason for doing what she did," he explained. "But for the life of me, I cannot figure out what she wanted to happen. Did she mean to embarrass Timothy? Embarrass you? Ruin the relationships he has with his teammates and coworkers? Timothy is the most liked member of your team." Seeing Jethro startle at that comment, he explained, "Ziva is the most feared, Anthony the most tolerated."

"And me?" Gibbs asked.

"The most avoided," Ducky supplied dryly. "Timothy listens when people talk to him. He is genuinely interested in their responses when he asks them how they are doing. He remembers those conversations and follows up on them. Because of that, he is not only well-liked, but respected by everyone as well."

"Huh."

"Many people were concerned about him when he suddenly disappeared, wasn't here as much, or was so preoccupied he didn't talk with them. I received many inquiries regarding him these last few months."

"Why didn't you say anything?"

"Would it have made a difference?" Ducky shrugged. "Besides, as his direct supervisor you would have known if there was a serious problem and did not seem overly worried or protective of Timothy during that time."

Gibbs grunted in agreement. The only thing he had really been worried about was Tim's attempt to doing all of it on his own.

"Abigail is often impulsive," Ducky continued, "But she is also a scientist. She wouldn't learn about Timothy's children and announce that you were the other parent if she didn't have cause to believe it," he said, looking at Gibbs to fill in the blanks.

"Jethro?" He asked when his companion didn't make a sound.

"I can't," he stated. "I asked them not to talk about it, so I shouldn't either, at least, not without talking with Tim first."

"Tim?" Ducky repeated. "I do believe that this is the first time I have heard you call him by that moniker."

Gibbs simply shrugged in reply and turned his eyes away from the doctor's curious gaze.

"Now you," Gibbs said, "What other reason did you have for not believing those rumors?"

"That was one of them," Ducky stated shaking his head.

Gibbs frowned, "What was?"

"The lack of familiarity," Ducky stated. "It is hard to imagine you having children with someone you never refer to by their first name," he stated dryly.

Gibbs rolled his eyes, "And the other reasons?"

"Besides the fact that it isn't scientifically viable?" Ducky asked continuing when his friend glared at him. "That was a big part of it," he admitted. "I know you care for all of your team members, but it seems to come easier for you to show it to Abigail, Anthony, and Ziva, even though you have known the latter for less time than Timothy," he pointed out.

"We don't, didn't, have much in common," Gibbs offered as an explanation.

"Ah, but how could you have known that if you never conversed with him outside of work?"

"Science and familiarity aside, any other reasons you didn't believe that I was the other father?" Gibbs asked gruffly once more not answering Ducky's question.

"A few," Ducky replied, meeting the other man's gaze to see if he really wanted to hear them. "Very well," The ME sighed before continuing. "After learning about Shannon and Kelly, I doubt you would be so well composed if you were once more about to embrace fatherhood. That is especially true once I learned about the children's medical history."

Gibbs didn't comment, just hopped off the table and headed towards the door.

"Jethro, you wanted to know."

"I did," He agreed, his hand on the door.

"I suggest you also find out why Abigail said what she did."

Gibbs twirled around, "I told you I coul-"

Ducky shook his head. "Not just what gave her cause to believe what she did, but why she announced it like she did."

Gibbs jolted at the reminder that those were two separate things. With a quick nod of thanks, he exited autopsy.

"You are wrong, Tony," Ziva confronted the SFA once the two were cloistered in a conference room. She did not want anyone to overhear them this time.

"About it always being the wife?" Every cold case he had reviewed, he had made a blithe comment about it probably being the wife before tossing it aside and grabbing another file.

"No, well, yes, that too, most likely," she replied. "But mostly I am referring to your belief that Gibbs and McGee are together."

Tony hesitated, not sure what to say. In truth, he was pretty sure that they weren't. Of course, something was still going on, and based on how McGee had been acting all day, it was really big. He just figured that if he continued to talk about it then McGee would finally give in and tell him the truth. He hadn't planned on McGee or anyone else overhearing those conversations though.

"Oh, really?" he finally replied. "And I suppose you figured out what exactly was going on?"

"No," she admitted, causing Tony to smirk at her.

"Well, then, you really don't know anything, then, do ya?"

Ziva frowned at him, "What I do know is that if you continue, you will tear this team apart."

Tony blinked. "Me?" He questioned flabbergasted at her prediction. "I'm not the one keeping secrets. If they would tell us what was going on then I wouldn't have to-"

"You are shooting yourself in the foot," she injected. "The more you pry into his personal life, the less McGee will trust you, the less he will be willing to share with you, so the more snooping you do, which makes-"

"Yeah, yeah, I get it, it's a vicious cycle," Tony muttered, moving his finger in a downward spiral motion.

"Exactly, a downward spiral," Ziva agreed. "A slippery slope. It leads nowhere and serves no purpose. No improvement. No change from when it begun. All it does is waste time and energy." Tony held up a hand to get her attention and then used a rolling motion to get her to move the conversation along.

"You can break it by respecting the privacy of others," Ziva stated.

"Or it can be broke-"

"Tony," she interrupted, her tone firm as she held his eyes. "Yes, they, he is keeping secrets, but do you really it is being done to be petty?" she asked. "Something is going on with McGee. He's upset and worried."

Tony snorted, "He might be a single dad to three-month-old twins just out of the hospital, he should be worried," Tony shared. "Not to mention that today is probably the first day he left them in someone else's care since he brought them home."

"He was fine this morning when he first returned to work," Ziva pointed out. "Neither one of us suspected anything was going on. And he's gotten more upset and tense as the day progressed."

Tony shrugged, "Then he's worried about how everyone is taking the news about him being a father. And about Abby's announcement," he added with a grin.

"Which isn't true," Ziva repeated firmly, trying to get him to understand that something more important than rumors were going on.

"All the more reason to be nervous. It's one thing to be found guilty of something you did do, but to be found guilty of a lie?" Tony shook his head. "You get the punishment without the pleasure."

"That is not it either," Ziva informed him impatiently. "And no more suggestions, comments, or jokes," she said when Tony once more opened his mouth to speak.

"This cycle needs to be broken before something is broken that cannot be repaired," she shared, expressing her worries for the situation, for their team. "Normally, McGee is the one who prevents things from going to far, either by ignoring what was said or by walking away. This is more serious than talking about his newest book, his recent bout of poison ivy, or his latest date."

Tony bit his lip to keep from commenting on that last remark, obviously they knew how that date ended…with twins.

Ziva glared at him as if suspecting what he was thinking before she continued. "Timothy has something more important on his mind and in his life than this, then all of us. He cannot be the one to stop it this time, someone else will have to do so," she announced looking right at Tony and making it clear who she nominated for that role.

He rolled her eyes at her lack of subtlety.

"Tony, please listen and think about what I am saying," she pleaded. "Do not dismiss it out of hand and throw the bath water out with the baby," she added, though truthfully she had never understood that saying. Why would someone throw out a baby, or even bath water when all you had to do was drain it?

Tony rolled her eyes, but didn't speak since he didn't want to get caught up in discussion about idioms.

"Tim was right earlier," she continued, her voice softer, gentler than before. "Looking at things now, especially through his eyes, I can see that you do take every opportunity to comment on his life in an unflattering manner; not everything can later be dismissed with a 'just joking'," she tried to explain.

"As he pointed out you did it this morning when he showed you a picture of his children. Something he did voluntarily," she added. "Perhaps you were just joking, but when everything you say seems to be mocking," she stopped and shrugged, letting him draw his own conclusion.

"Is it any surprise that he might have had a hard time informing us about what was going on in his life, given how we reacted? We didn't deserve to know."

Tony remained silent as he thought about her words.

Ziva sighed. She was unable to read Tony at the moment, but felt she had no choice but to continue, hoping she could get through to him.

"You said it was about trust, yes?"

Tony reluctantly nodding, suspecting a trap when it became clear Ziva would not continue until he answered.

"Then prove you trust him by giving him the time and space he needs. A cornered animal will attack," she reminded him.

Before today Tony would've laughed at the idea of Probie being an attacking animal, but he clearly demonstrated that he can and will attack if pushed too far.

"You need to prove that you are trustworthy."

"Me?" Tony asked in surprise.

"Yes, you," she snapped. "All of us," she softly added. "Abby messed up big time, and unfortunately, it is not just Abby that will have to deal with the fall out from this."

Tony nodded, understanding that. "Yeah, but,"

"No buts," she argued. "Tim chose to tell Abby because he thought she was the safe choice. She didn't just betray him; she decimated any trust he had in her. He will probably question and doubt everyone and you, we," she corrected, "Have been skating on the edge of his trust for a long time. Today our actions might have cut that edge in half."

Tony blinked but didn't attempt to correct her, knowing that this was not the time or the place, especially since he understood what she had meant.

"This is our team. If we want to keep it intact then we need to fix it. Everyone had a hand in bending in out of shape," she admitted. "But who did the most damage to us?

"The ones who heard some surprising news about a teammate and teasingly insulted said teammate? The ones of us who gossiped about what was going on, even when they did not completely believe it? Or the one who tried to keep his private life separate to avoid being mocked, ridiculed, and questioned about an already stressful and challenging situation?"

Tony closed his eyes and briefly lowered his head. When put like that…

"Timothy has three-month-old twins to deal with," Ziva stated, "Their well-being is more important than anything else in his life, as it should be. He doesn't need either of us acting like children. If you really want to be a part of his life outside of NCIS, then you need to grow up and stop this cycle. Things are not going to change unless you change, we change," she informed him.

"What we need to do is show him that we are worthy of his trust, of being in his life," she concluded.

Neither spoke for a few minutes as they continued to stare at one another. Something in Tony's expression had Ziva believing that she might have gotten through to him.

"And how do I do that?" Tony asked.

"That is for each of us to figure out," she informed him, "But know that whatever you do, you must be sincere and follow through with it, otherwise things would be worse than if you did nothing."

"So, no pressure, then," Tony muttered before heading back to the bullpen.

"I just hope that it is not too late to repair the damage," she softly stated to an empty room.

Spying her silver-haired fox soundlessly enter he lab, Abby jumped up and raced towards him.

"Gibbs!" she shouted gleefully. "I knew you weren't really mad at me."

Gibbs cocked an eyebrow, face stern as he stared at her.

Abby peered over his shoulder. "Chill, El Jefe," she teased. "No one's here, you can relax."

"I am relaxed," Gibbs replied, his tone contradicting his words. "I'm also pissed."

Abby frowned in confusion. "What did Tony do?" she finally asked. "I haven't seen anyone for hours," she grumbled. "Missed all the good gossip, apparently."

His face hardened at the mention of gossip. "Not Tony," Gibbs informed her, mentally correcting himself that it wasn't just Tony.

Abby scrunched up her nose, "Ziva? I can't imagine her starting something. Finishing it, yes," she continued, grinning up at him. "But not starting something."

"She didn't start anything."

Abby nodded at that confirmation. "McGee, then," she surmised. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised. After how he was acting this morning he was spoiling for a fight," her head shook in disappointment.

Still staring at Abby, Gibbs stated, "Can't blame him." His tone indicating that he meant both for Tim's mood, if he had instigated a fight, as well as the reason why Gibbs was upset.

"Then who?" Abby's tone displaying her confusion. "Surely not Ducky. Jimmy? The Director? Fornell?" The last was a stretch, but it wasn't unheard of for the FBI to upset Gibbs, though that usually happened when cases overlapped.

"You."

"Me? What did I do? To who?"

He nodded and gave her a look in response to her first two questions. "Everyone, but mostly McGee."

"If he can't handle this, how is he ever going to handle twins?" she muttered.

Gibbs's eyes hardened. Abby's reaction to his words, in fact, his entire visit showed that she had no remorse for anything that had happened, making Gibbs wish he had let Vance storm down here earlier.

"He is doing a great job, especially since he is basically doing it alone. The one person he voluntarily told that he hoped would support him, broke his trust in numerous ways," he pointedly added.

Abby just rolled her eyes not giving a verbal response.

"Being a new parent isn't easy when there is one kid and two parents," Gibbs informed her. "Tim is trying to be a new parent with two kids and one adult. You pulling a stunt like this on his first day back, definitely didn't help him or the situation," he added. "He told you that he hadn't told anyone else at work yet. Told you that he wanted to do so in his own way, in his own time. Something you blatantly disregarded," Gibbs added.

"Now, in addition to everything else, he has to deal with not being able to trust you."

"He can trust me!" she vehemently protested.

"Really? Can he?" Gibbs asked, staring her in the eye until she turned away. "Can anyone? Abby, this really might break up the team. Tony is too busy trying to figure out what is going on; both he and Ziva and angry that Tim didn't inform them about his children that it is the only thing on their mind. For the first time ever I had to take a case away from us and bench my team." He stopped and looked at her, when she didn't say anything or even look in his direction, he continued, "None of this should have happened," he hissed, his voice clearly placing the blame on her shoulders.

"Well, Timmy should have told us about the twins sooner!" she argued.

"Informing the entire building about his children is only a part of what you did," Gibbs replied. "It was his decision when or even if to tell us, and I will defend that right whether I agree with his choice or not. Nothing, nothing," he stressed, "gives you the right to take that away from him, not your concerns, not your suspicions, not your declarations of trying to help him, not even science and DNA results."

Gibbs started pacing in the lab.

"I just cannot figure out why you did it. Why you ran their DNA without permission or why you announced your beliefs to everyone, especially since you did so as fact," he added, glaring at her. "Not that I believe for one moment that you seriously believe that those kids were created in a lab by combining our DNA," he softly added.

"Does it matter?" Abby pouted. "It's over and done with, in the past."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow, "In the past, that it has already happened, yes. Over and done with?" Gibbs shook his head. "Not yet. There will be fall out because of this," he began only to stop. He would gladly let Vance handle informing Abby about what was coming.

"As for if it matters? Yes, because the reason why might let us know the likelihood of this happening again."

She snorted, "I seriously doubt that Timmy is going to become a father to twins again and not tell anyone. He probably won't even have a single date in the next four years," a laughing Abby predicted.

Gibbs just looked at her waiting to see if she would take this seriously. When it became apparent that she had nothing else to say, he spoke again.

"That's it? No explanation, justification, or excuse? No reason for what you said and did?"

Abby stubbornly refused to comment.

Gibbs shook his head. "I really expected more from you Abby," he said as he began to walk away.

"The DNA-"

"Stop." Gibbs commanded, twirling around to face her once more. "There are numerous ways we could be related,"

"It-"

"Even if the test results are true, there are probably a million reasons why it showed those results."

"The re-"

"I'm not saying you made a mistake," Gibbs interrupted. "But it could be possible that you didn't get a clean sample since you acquired your sample quickly and in a hurry."

"But-"

"No, you had a chance to explain and didn't," Gibbs interrupted as he once more headed towards the exit.

"And Abby," he called just before he stepped through the door, "What I said earlier about regaining trust, include me in that. I've never been more disappointed by someone."

1-19-20

Surprisingly, last chapter no one was really curious about where Gibbs had gone off to...but you were curious about Tim's lunch.

Was going to keep Abby for another chapter, but since I titled this one 'children behave, it seemed appropriate to add her...of course then I thought to name the chapter superlatives after Ducky's comment about most liked, most feared, most tolerated, and most avoided. But I kept Abby and the 'children behave' title included as well. Your welcome :)

That made it a larger chapter than normal, but I figure you guys wouldn't mind.

Hope you enjoyed this chapter.

We'll find out where Tim went during lunch next chapter...