Hi, everyone!

I am sorry that this has taken SO long for me to reply to. I haven't been watching NCIS much lately, and have been getting some ideas in other fandoms that I would like to try, but I did want to finish this little story because it was so fun to do. I finally sat down and just wrote up the majority of this ending. No one has proof read, so any errors are all on me! :)

Thanks to all who have followed, favourited, and reviewed this story. I appreciate it very much!

I do hope to finish off/update a few more stories soon, so look for those when they come out. Now, enjoy!

...

PEACE PICNIC

Abby shuffled and looked under dampened lashes at Gibbs in the next room. This was unusual, for him to sequester two of them without giving much comfort. She did not like this. She did not like it at all.

Well, most of all, she did not like the fact that she had just been paddled. That was her main grievance.

From the looks on Tim's face, that was his main grievance as well, although he was not quite as pouty about being given space by Gibbs as Abby was. Instead, he would have preferred if he had also gotten a break from her. But the two of them had been sent to the kitchen to make a "peace pact" with the underlying knowledge that refusing to do so might end in more unpleasant consequences. Eager to avoid that from becoming a reality, Tim turned to Abby.

"So, what'll we do different next time?" he grumbled a little while trying to sound respectful enough of Gibbs' order that his mentor would not be frustrated.

Abby shrugged, still more focused on her stinging bottom than on trying to prevent a repeat of the fighting that had lead to it.

"C'mon, Abs," Tim coaxed. She finally turned around and looked at him and a thoughtful gleam was in her eyes. Good. She was finally going to focus.

"I'm hungry," she muttered.

"Abs ... actually, me too," Tim said, cutting off his complaint to agree with her.

Abby began opening and closing cupboards, trying to get an idea of what was in the house that was edible. She wanted something beyond coffee, after all!

"Here's some ramen," Tim said, pulling out four packages of it.

"Anything else we could mix with it?" Abby asked, her own search basically consisting of finding salt, pepper, an overripe banana, and a box of tea that Gibbs must keep for Ducky visits. "Gibbs clearly needs to go grocery shopping soon. He's out of all our favourites."

Tim looked at the rest of the cupboard he was searching. There were a few items - a single can of Coca Cola, an empty box of pancake mix that someone (likely Tony) forgot to throw out when emptied. There was a tin of something that he picked up the examine before turning around and holding it up for Abby's inspection. "Nothing else in here that we could mix in, really, unless you want canned anchovies."

"Gross!" Abby said quietly - trying to avoid being heard by Gibbs - with a giggle that could not be held back. Tim could not help but smile at her in response - the first real smile that they had shared in a bit. His smile seemed to encourage Abby to laugh more, and after a bit it was too hard to hold back his own amusement. The two of them stood there in the kitchen, laughing crazily over an unwanted can of tiny fish. For some reason - may it have been the overwhelming stress of the last few weeks, the suppressed tears at the spanking, the sadness of having really been so unkind to each other when they were usually best friends, or most likely a combination of all those factors and more - it felt so incredibly good to laugh that they continued, even when they had to sit down on sore backsides to catch their breath.

"We should have been laughing more instead of letting the stress eat us alive," Tim commented, pulling Abby into a hug that she eagerly returned.

"I'm sorry I was so ... everything," she said honestly.

"Me too."

"So, next time, take a break if it gets overwhelming, work in different locations if we get too focused that each other's quirks are on our nerves, and ... cute animal videos if we need a break and a smile?" Abby suggested.

"And we BOTH go out to take regular breaks and get food and drinks, because the rest refreshes us and allows us to work faster and better than when we try to slog through it all at once," Tim added, before whispering, "And let's not NOT take breaks because we're nervous about what Gibbs might say. We know how we work best, and he values confidence. Let's show that too him." Abby smiled at him and grinned back, laughing again when she held out her hand.

"Pinky swear on it?"

"Sure. Might as well make it official, right?" he said teasingly.

"Good. Now, food. As in, the ramen, not the anchovies!"

"What's wrong with anchovies?" Gibbs asked, coming into the kitchen now that he heard brighter tones and had witnessed the pinky swear from "afar". It looked like the two "kids" had figured things out, once again.

"Nothing - as long as you're the one eating them!" Abby giggled, giving him a hug and grateful when he returned it with the added bonus of a kiss on her cheek.

"You got everything settled?" Gibbs asked, looking between the two of them kindly.

"We did," Tim affirmed.

Gibbs smiled and nodded. He trusted them. Their partnership was valuable to both of them, and the whole team as well. It was good to see them getting together again, to hear their laughter.

"Next time, speak up if you need a break," he said. That was as close as Gibbs was going to get to saying, "And sorry that I maybe pushed you both a little too hard over the last case."

Thankfully for Gibbs, both Tim and Abby seemed to understand what he was trying to say. Abby gave him another hug while Tim searched around for a pot.

"I suppose I could make all the ramen so you could have some too," he said in a surprisingly teasing tone to Gibbs.

Gibbs just rolled his eyes. "You'd better!"

And then the three of them laughed, together.

For the moment, their slice of reality was back to normal. It would be tested again by the next case, and the one after that, and the one after that ... but as friends and family? That would stick, no matter how many arguments or fights or teasing happened. Because that is what family does.

...

I hope that some people out there enjoyed! Virtual hugs! :) Blessings, MM