Chapter 26 - Introductions

Ducky turned around from the passenger's seat, "I'll go in ahead of you and see if I can find anyone I might know. Caitlin, would you mind accompanying me to perhaps flash your badge around so we could speed this process along?" Ducky climbed out of the truck before saying, "And do wake up Jethro," he said with a smile. Once Kate was beside him, Ducky took her arm to escort her into the hospital in a true gentlemanly fashion.

Back inside the Suburban, Tony, McGee, and Abby were ready to go into rock-paper-scissors to see who had to wake up Gibbs.

"I'm not waking him up!" McGee declared. "He already hates me as so as it is, why make him want to annihilate me more?" Rochelle started giggling next to McGee. "Oh you think that's funny, huh?" Rochelle nodded, causing McGee to let out an exasperated sigh. "Guuyyyys," he whined.

"No way in hell am I waking him up. I'm outta here," Tony said as he bailed from the truck.

Abby cracked her door and yelled after him in a hushed whisper, "Tony, that's so not fair!" She gently closed the car door and turned around to face the backseat. "Well, looks like you get to wake him up, Timmy!"

McGee's eyes got wide, "What? Why me?"

"Well, you're the field agent. I'm just a lab tech," she responded with a sly smile.

"All right, I've heard enough," Trisha uttered as she climbed over the seat and next to Gibbs. "He's not going to kill anyone just because you wake him up."

McGee shook his head, "You don't know Gibbs like we do. He's like a bear; gentle when he's sleeping and a lean mean killing machine when he's awake. He'll go straight for your throat if you wake him up. I'm warning you kid, don't do it."

Trisha rolled her eyes at McGee, "Watch me," she said simply. She turned her full attention to the sleeping agent next to her. "Gibbs," she gently called. Trisha put a hand on his shoulder and shook him lightly. "Come on, Gibbs, you gotta wake up," she said louder.

Gibbs opened his eyes and grabbed Trisha's throat. He turned his head so that only Trisha could see his face and winked. To everyone else, it looked like he had a death grip on her neck, but in reality, he was being quite gentle. Trisha reached up and grabbed Gibbs' giant hand with both of her small ones.

"Gibbs, come on man, don't do this," Trisha fake-pleaded for her life.

"You shouldn't have woken me up," he growled in response with half a grin on his face. "Now you'll have to pay!"

"Oh my God!" Abby cried. "McGee, do something!"

Gibbs turned and looked from McGee and then back to Abby. "If either one of you moves, she dies!" They froze. Gibbs turned back to Trisha and smiled. He mouthed the words 'die now' to her and pretended to tighten his grip around her throat. In response, Trisha made gasping and gurgling noises. She rolled her eyes back into her head and went limp.

"Boss, come on Boss, what are you doing? That kid loves you, what's wrong with you?" McGee started yelling.

Gibbs turned around to look at McGee and sounded a low, evil laugh. "Why didn't you try and stop me, McGee? It's all your fault!"

Just then Kate yanked the car door open. "Hey Ducky found some doctor he knows so we can get…" her voice trailed off as she saw what she presumed to be the dead body of Trisha with Gibbs' hand wrapped tightly around her throat. Her eyes grew wide.

Trisha opened her eyes and popped up with Gibbs' hand still on her neck. "Oh, hey Kate. Did you say that someone will see Gibbs now?"

Speechless, Kate just nodded. She looked from Abby and then to McGee and noticed that their mouths were gaping open in a state of shock.

"Awesome," Trish replied. "Come on, Gibbs," she said as she turned and tugged on his arm.

Gibbs let go of her throat and planted a kiss on her head. "Good acting, kiddo," he told her. He slowly made his way out of the truck with a hand on Trisha's shoulder. Once outside, he turned around to face Abby and McGee. He looked back and forth between the two, smiled, and slammed the door shut.

"What was that back there?" Kate asked incredulously as the three made their way into the hospital.

Trisha sighed and looked up to Kate, "No one wanted to wake up Gibbs, so I was about to do it. Then McGee told me not to because Gibbs here is a regular killing machine who would go straight for my throat if I woke him up." She started giggling. "So he did, and he killed me!"

Kate looked at Gibbs, "That's not really nice, you know. Did you see the looks on their faces?"

"Well yea, Kate. That was kinda the point," he stated.

"You really make me wonder sometimes, Leroy Jethro Gibbs," Kate laughed.

They walked into the waiting room to find Ducky talking with a short bald man in a white doctor's coat. He was sporting a black goatee. "Ah yes, here he is now. Dr. Williams, this is Special Agent Gibbs," Ducky introduced them.

Dr. Williams held out a hand, "Nice to meet you, sir." He looked down to Trisha and stuck out his hand for her to shake. "And you must be his daughter?" he asked.

Trisha gave the doctor a weird look before glancing up to Gibbs. "Uhhh…" she replied.

Gibbs put his hand on Trisha's shoulders and gave her a reassuring smile before looking at the doctor. "Yup, this is my daughter Trish. She's a little shy sometimes," he told him.

Dr. Williams patted Trisha's head, "Don't worry, I'll take good care of your dad. Now, if you'll follow me Agent Gibbs. This shouldn't take very long, I just want to take a few X-rays." He turned back to the others, "You can wait here if you like. There's also a cafeteria down the hall in case you need anything to eat," he said as he walked out the door with Gibbs on his heels.

Trisha watched Gibbs walk down the hall until he followed the doctor into another room. She came back and sat down next to Kate and Ducky sporting a giant smile.

Kate took notice to the look on Trisha's face. "Hey, what are you smilin' at?" she asked her.

Trisha turned to Kate with a gleeful look in her eyes. "Didn't you hear? Gibbs just called me his daughter!"

Ducky met Kate's eyes and grinned. "You know Trisha," he started. "This reminds me of the time when…"