A Dare, Or Something More Sinister?
Rating: T
Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS... I'm just taking the characters for a spin!
Author's Notes: Thank-you all for the reviews, I'm glad you all like it... as always a few more wouldn't go unnoticed! Please!
And of course, again a humungous thank-you to Kate for her terrific work and inspiration!
When Tony and McGee entered the bullpen, Kate was nowhere to be seen and Gibbs was working at his desk. They went to their respective desks and began working. They worked in silence until the elevator dinged and Abby emerged with her usual sense of energy. She sauntered up to Gibbs' desk and stood in-front of it with a big smile on her face, waiting for him to look up.
"What is it Abby?" he asked, still focused on the computer in-front of him
She cleared her throat, "You know it's really rude to not look at somebody when they're talking to you" she replied
"But you're not talking" he pointed out, leaning back on his chair to look at her and putting his hands behind his head
"Well, I intend to" she responded
"Abby, did you come up here for a reason?" he asked
"Yep" she answered, and gave him a mug filled with a liquid he couldn't identify
He looked closer into the mug, "What is it?"
"I think Kate's right, you do need glasses" Abby said, ignoring his question.
He grumbled, "Abby! What is it?"
"Green tea. Should make you feel better in no time" she finally replied, "Now, drink up, or I'll have to tell Ducky he can send you to hospital"
He reached for the cup and took a sip, screwing up his face, "I'm not gonna drink this, Abby"
Abby placed her hands on her hips and scowled at him, "It's my own recipe, Gibbs. And it works"
Gibbs inwardly groaned and drained the cup of tea, scrunching up his face. He handed the cup to Abby and stared at a point on the desk to stop the tea from coming back up, breathing heavily.
"Good boy" Abby told him, "Give it a sec, it'll get better"
Looking up at Abby, he nodded and reclined in his chair. He wiped a layer of sweat from his forehead and pinched the bridge of his nose. Abby watched him for a while, then left when she was satisfied that he would keep the tea down.
Kate walked into the bull-pen and sat at her desk.
"Where have you been?" Gibbs demanded
"Why do you care?" Kate asked in return
"Never answer a question with a question, Agent Todd" Gibbs stated, glaring at her
"Says who? Sometimes it's the only way to get answers!" Kate responded, meeting his glare in intensity
McGee audibly sighed, squinting and concentrating intensely at the screen in-front of him.
"Is there a problem, McGee!" Gibbs snapped, turning his frustration on the younger agent
"No, boss, it's something…" McGee said, gesturing to his screen
"Good, then get back to work!" Gibbs barked, interrupting him
McGee nodded, turning his attention back to his work and frowning.
Gibbs looked from McGee to Tony, noticing he was watching the scene unfold around him, "Don't you have work to do?"
"Yeah" Tony replied, glancing at Kate before looking back at his computer
"Ah, that might be a bad idea, boss" McGee said carefully
Gibbs looked back at McGee, "So, there is a problem?"
"No.. Er, actually yes, boss, but nothing I can't fix. I think the server has a virus and…"
"McGee, fix it!" Gibbs snapped. He stood up, stumbling backwards slightly and leaned on his desk for support. He briefly closed his eyes and slowly stood up properly, removing his hands from his desk and opening his eyes. Keeping his newly found balance, he walked to stand in-front of Kate's desk.
"Kate, we need to talk" Gibbs said
"Finally!" Tony remarked from his desk. Gibbs glared at him, "Right, I have work to do, on-it boss"
"I don't want to talk, Gibbs" Kate replied sharply, "Nothing to talk about"
Gibbs was about to reply, when Ducky made a timely arrival. Ducky looked between Gibbs and Kate, feeling the tension, "Is there anything I can help with?"
"No!" Kate and Gibbs replied in unison
"Yes!" Tony replied with them
"We're going to talk" Gibbs explained, ignoring Tony's comment
"No, we're not" Kate responded
Ducky sighed, exasperated, "Unfortunately, Caitlin, I'm inclined to agree with Jethro. You can borrow autopsy to talk privately"
Gibbs looked to Kate, "Shall we?" he asked, offering her his hand
She shook away his hand and stood up, "Fine" she muttered under her breath and led the way to the elevator
Abby, who had walked into the bullpen slightly after Ducky, turned to the three men who watched as the doors to the elevator closed.
"Oh, he is so in for it!" she exclaimed
"Absolutely" Tony agreed
McGee had a smug smile on his face, "Okay, pay up. Where's my $20?"
Abby turned around to face McGee, "Not so fast McGeek, it isn't over till the fat lady sings", she looked back to the elevator with a smile, "They are so gonna hook up"
McGee's expression turned confused, "What? How do you know?" he asked, skeptically
"I'll raise you another 20" Abby replied
"You guys are betting on whether or not they'll get together?" Tony asked looking between the two of them
"Yep, and I'm gonna win" Abby said, bouncing forward onto her toes, "You want in?"
Tony paused, thoughtfully, thinking back to yesterday's events, "No, that's low"
"Tony, you bet on things all the time" McGee responded
"Yes I do probie. But you have to draw the line somewhere," Tony gestured to the elevator, "They're Kate and Gibbs. I'm not gonna place a bet on them getting together, not going to put a bet on them, they are our collegues."
"Are you saying that you're not going to bet on them because we work with them? You betted that Gibbs couldn't go a week without coffee" McGee replied
"And you're gonna lose" Abby said
Tony grumbled, looking slightly hurt, "I need coffee" he said as he walked away
"Timothy, I don't believe that was wise" Ducky said
"What?" McGee asked, genuinely confused
"Bringing up the bet over coffee" Ducky replied, "He believes that it's his fault Gibbs went MIA and was injured"
"Why?" Abby asked
Ducky sighed, "He thinks Jethro was not on top of his game, and didn't react quickly enough because of the bet"
Abby and McGee exchanged glances. "But boss-man wouldn't have let something like that get the better of him; he would have seen it coming. And from the bruises on his knuckles, he fought back. If he hadn't known, Brown would have just…" Abby stopped as she searched for the right-word
"I know Abigail, but Anthony doesn't see it that way." Ducky interrupted, putting his hand on her shoulder, "Don't worry, I'll speak to him"
Abby nodded. McGee's face lit up as his computer beeped and he went to his desk. "Abby, I think I caught the hacker"
"What hacker?" Ducky asked, "Does Jethro know?"
"Ok, to answer your first question first, the reason the system has been screwing up over the last few days is because there was a hacker, somehow they managed to get in when the systems were down from the black-out. And secondly, no, Gibbs doesn't know" Abby replied
"Mmm, Abs, could you help out, the guy is good, already bypassed 2 of our traps, got passed a dozen fire-walls…" McGee asked
Ducky watched as McGee and Abby stared at his computer, typing frantically and exchanging techno-babble, and decided to go find Tony.
That's it for chapter 23... I hope you like it! Please review, please!