(AN) Hello, and welcome to my next NCIS fanfiction: Self-Defence: 2. This fanfiction will also involve, Gibbs, McGee, Delilah and Marcie; the story is set between Unseen Improvements and Blown Away. I hope you enjoy.
Credit to DS2010 for some of the dialogue.
Disclaimer: I don't own NCIS; all characters and locations are owned by CBS and Belisarius Productions.
Self-Defence: 2
It was May. Gibbs was in his basement working on his new boat: Rule 91. It had been almost two months since Gibbs had been suspended indefinitely from his role as special agent in charge at NCIS, and if he was being perfectly honest with himself, Gibbs was enjoying the peace and quiet, along with all the free time. Gibbs however did not regret what he had done. That monster deserved the short, but satisfying beating he'd gotten.
"Hey, Gibbs, you down here?" called a familiar voice.
"I'll be up in a minute." sighed Gibbs, knowing who it was.
The silver haired man put away his tools, cleaned his hands, walked up the stairs and found his new journalist friend Marcie Warren sitting on his sofa, drinking coffee. Marcie's face-mask was hanging around her neck. "Do you always invite yourself into other people's houses?" he asked in a slightly annoyed voice.
"Well, if you keep that door unlocked all the time, that's gonna happen," snarked Marcie, "Have you looked at that file I gave you yet?"
"Uhhh … not yet … but I will," lied Gibbs before giving the journalist a curious look, "Did you come here just to ask me that and drink my coffee, or is there something else?"
"There actually is," replied Marcie, rolling her eyes, "I'm helping to investigate a string of violent home invasions on a neighborhood in the Metro area. Fancy getting out of that basement and helping out?"
"I dunno … Metro PD will likely be investigating," replied Gibbs in an uncertain tone of voice, "I'm probably not going to help win anybody's trust after getting suspended."
"Metro are so far stumped," stated the woman, "I'm helping a neighborhood watch group who are trying to protect their homes, hopefully, we'll catch this gang in the act. Please, Gibbs, it'll help you get out of the house."
"Oh, alright," sighed Gibbs in defeat, "But no heroics, okay."
Marcie simply smiled before drinking the rest of her coffee and standing up.
Gibbs grabbed his face-mask, put it on and headed out the front door. Marcie followed, putting her face-mask on.
Gibbs and Marcie soon arrived in the small suburban neighborhood. Marcie led Gibbs over to one of the houses before ringing the doorbell.
The door opened and a tall, middle-aged, bald, dark-skinned man wearing a face-mask peered out at them. "Hey, Marcie, did you bring another journalist to help?" asked the man in a friendly voice.
"No, Mark, this is Leroy Jethro Gibbs," replied Marcie, "He's that former NCIS agent I wrote about … you know; the one who beat up that dog killer?"
"Whoa," exclaimed Mark in shock, "Yeah, that was pretty brutal … can't say I blame you though. Anyway, we actually know you, you're quite famous around here, Mr Gibbs."
"I am?" cried Gibbs in surprise.
"He is?" said an equally confused Marcie.
"Yep," stated Mark, "Anyway, I'll take it Marcie brought you here to help with these nasty home invasions?"
"Yes, Mark, I'm sure he'll be a great help," said Marcie, "Well, looks like my job here is done. Let me know how it goes, Gibbs."
And before the silver haired man could stop her, Marcie ran off. Gibbs groaned, realising that he'd been tricked into thinking Marcie would stick around.
"We're having our meeting round the back," explained Mark, "Safety from Covid and all."
Gibbs nodded in understanding before following Mark round to the back yard. Gibbs was starting to think that nobody else would recognise him, or know his name when suddenly-
"Hey, boss!" cried a surprised and familiar voice.
Gibbs looked up and saw McGee, Delilah, Kevin, Audrey and Emma standing (or sitting in Delilah's case) in Mark's rather large back yard; all wearing face-masks.
"What are you all doing here?" asked Gibbs dryly.
"We're part of the neighborhood watch group," informed Kevin, "Plus, we do live in this neighbourhood."
"And when these break-ins started happening, we wanted to help figure out who was responsible and protect our neighbors," explained Emma, "Our house is the only one that hasn't been targeted. By the way, did you really punch an animal abuser in the face, Uncle Gibbs?"
"Yes," replied Gibbs before turning to McGee and Delilah, "And what are you two doing here? You don't live here, and since the Dalys weren't attacked, it's not NCIS' jurisdiction."
"Well, after mine and Tim's little adventure in the Bahamas, we decided that it would be nice to try and help any local neighborhood groups, just like how we help people with the jobs that we do," answered Delilah, "The twins are with the babysitter in case you're wondering."
"So, what do we know about this gang?" asked Gibbs curiously.
"There's six of them," explained Mark, "They all wear dark clothing and devil masks. They usually strike around about eleven-thirty at night, and they're quite violent."
"And they had somebody observing the houses they were going to target the night before," explained Mark before smirking, "I actually caught the little bugger earlier; eyeing up Kevin and Audrey's house."
Flashback
Earlier in the day, Mark was walking down the street with his face-mask on when he suddenly noticed a young man in a red hoodie with black pants and a face-mask observing Kevin and Audrey's house.
"Hey, you!" called out Mark in a suspicious voice, "What do you think you're doing?"
The young man turned and made a run for it, but Mark was already giving chase.
Mark tackled the young man to the ground, grinning in triumph.
"You know anything about a gang of devil mask-wearing thugs terrorising this neighborhood?" questioned Mark.
"Maybe." grunted the man.
End Flashback
So, Gibbs, since I heard you and Tim are really good at questioning suspects, could you maybe question him?" suggested Mark, "I promise, we'll hand him over to Metro once we're done."
"Okay." replied Gibbs.
Mark then stood up and marched through his back door. A few moments later, he was back with the young, face-mask wearing man, who he shoved into a chair opposite Gibbs and McGee.
"So, what's your name?" asked Gibbs dryly.
"C-Calem Bell." replied the man nervously.
"Well, Calem, you're in very serious trouble if we hand you over to Metro," informed McGee, "You've been aiding a group of really violent thugs break into people's houses; this whole neighbourhood is in a state of terror."
"You have to believe me when I say that I wanted nothing to do with what they were actually doing," stated Calem, "They threatened to hurt my parents if I didn't do some scouting for them."
"You were scared, that's understandable," said Gibbs, "But what I want to know is why these thugs are doing this?"
"The main leader is called Rex Brown," began Calem nervously, "He and the other members of his gang grew up in this neighborhood, but they were all abused as children, and nobody helped because their parents were very good at covering up the scars and bruises."
"So, these attacks are their way of getting back at the neighborhood." concluded Emma in realisation.
"Yes, that's exactly right," said Calem in amazement, "How did you figure that out?"
"I knew a couple of good psychologists," answered Emma, "also, I've gotten into Criminal Minds."
Mark suddenly pulled Calem up by the ear. "Right, time to go to Metro." he said before leading the boy away.
"Shouldn't you be social distancing, man?" cried Calem nervously.
"We're wearing masks, and I ain't letting you out of my sight." stated Mark firmly.
The others laughed as they watched Mark go. Kevin and Audrey then turned to face Gibbs, McGee and Delilah.
"Gibbs, I need your help with something." said Audrey, very matter of factly.
"What is it?" sighed Gibbs, who was wanting more than anything to return to his boat.
"Can you please convince Kevin to get a burglar alarm for the house," said Audrey, "He doesn't think it's necessary."
"You're askin' the wrong person." said Gibbs abruptly.
The brunette turned to Tim and Delilah. "You two can help." she pleaded, giving them big, pleading eyes.
"Uhhh, leave us out of this." replied Tim; Delilah was nodding in agreement.
"I've told you before, I don't think we need one," said Kevin, smiling nervously, "Besides, they're such a nuisance."
"But, honey, I'd like a little more protection," insisted Audrey before hugging her husband's arm and giving him the pleading eyes, "These thugs are dangerous; remember what happened to the Johnsons?"
"Who?" asked Gibbs.
"They were one of the victims of these home invasions," said Delilah sadly, "they were all brutally murdered."
"Plus, your house seems more jinxed than me and Dee's apartment," remarked McGee, "It's been broken into nine times. Haven't you ever thought of moving?"
"That's true, but we're not going to let some dangerous, masked thugs scare me and my family away from our home," stated Audrey firmly before turning back to Kevin and giving him the pleading eyes, "And even with me learning self-defence, I'd still like some peace of mind. Plus, you wouldn't want anything bad to happen to me and Emma if we were all alone; especially now that Tommy's left for university"
"Okay, I'll call the alarm company tomorrow to get an estimate." replied her husband, giving in; knowing that if he didn't, his wife would never let him hear the end of it.
"Me and Tim are going to Kevin and Audrey's for dinner tonight, do you want to join us, Gibbs?" asked Delilah.
"Uhhh … sure, why not." replied Gibbs dryly before giving a rare smile.
Later that night, McGee and Delilah stayed for dinner. Audrey made them all Chocolate Parfaits. The brunette smiled as Kevin seemed to be enjoying his.
"I think it's a bit premature to celebrate just yet," remarked Gibbs, "That gang is still out there, and from what Calem said, this house is likely their next target."
"Well, Metro know who they're looking for now," stated Audrey as she ate her own Parfait, "Hey, Gibbs, are you ever going to come back to NCIS? We've missed you."
"Yeah; definitely not the same without you around," said Kevin, "But from what I've heard, Tim is doing a really good job as team leader."
McGee blushed furiously. "Thanks Kev." he muttered before looking at Delilah, who was smirking at him.
"I think that'll be up to the director," informed Gibbs, "I don't regret what I did, but I still accept the punishment. Police need to be held accountable for their actions, and NCIS agents are no exception. After the Black Lives Matter protests, Sec-Nav started breathing down everybody's necks to make sure we'd be held accountable if there was an incident, and he made the right move."
Everybody nodded in agreement.
"Also, Ellie's been acting weird lately." remarked Audrey.
"Weirder than when she first started, you mean?" asked Gibbs.
"Yep," replied Audrey, "She's been giving me very odd and vivid facts regarding the damage you can do via self-defence. I don't want to kill anybody if I have to defend myself … sounds more like stuff you'd learn from the CIA rather than NCIS; the way she goes on."
"Yeah, I've noticed it too." said McGee.
"Me too." said Delilah.
After dinner, Audrey placed all the dishes in the dishwasher. McGee, Delilah, Kevin and Gibbs then prepared to head out. They were heading to a nearby bowling alley.
"I should be home around midnight, babe," said Kevin before giving the woman a kiss on the cheek, "You sure you'll be alright on your own?"
"I'll be fine." assured Audrey.
The couple then exchanged hugs and kisses.
Gibbs, McGee, Delilah and Kevin put their face-masks on.
After the group left, Audrey locked the door, and soon got ready for bed along with Emma. After getting into bed at ten, Audrey read the new James Patterson novel she had bought, but soon dozed off, causing the book to slip off the bed and on to the floor with a small thud.
About an hour later, Audrey awoke to the sound of a crash coming from the living room. Reaching for her phone, the brunette saw that it was only 11:30PM. Audrey began to dial 9-1-1 when the door suddenly burst open and six men in dark clothing and devil masks entered. Audrey quickly hid the phone under her quilt.
"Don't move!" hissed the first man, aiming a firm finger at her, while his partners began raiding the drawers and closet.
Audrey was clutching the quilt to her body while pressing the 9-1-1 button on her phone, praying that it would go through.
"9-1-1, what's your emergency?" asked a male voice on the other end of the line.
The robbers suddenly turned towards Audrey. The main one marched over to the bed, pulled the quilt away and saw the phone. "Hello?" came the operators voice, "Hello?"
The second man stormed towards Audrey, grabbed the phone, gently laid it on the floor and stomped on it with his foot. The first man then grabbed Audrey by the arm, dragged her from the bed and threw the young woman to the floor.
"What did you think you were trying to do, lady!" barked the first man, slapping Audrey across the face.
"Nothing." answered Audrey in a voice quivering with fear.
The brunette sat up and her eyes quickly widened in fear as the men surrounded her.
The men suddenly looked towards the door as footsteps approached. Audrey felt helpless as her precious teenage daughter entered the room.
"Hey, Mom, what's going-
Emma suddenly screamed in fear as one of the Devil Masks grabbed her round the chest and pushed her towards Audrey. Emma was thrown next to her mom, who wrapped her arms around the blonde protectively.
The first Devil Mask grabbed Emma by the elbows and dragged her away from Audrey, he then hauled the girl to her feet, pushed her towards the dressing table and threw Emma on to the dressing table chair, the man took out some zip-ties and tied Emma to the chair before gagging her with some duct-tape. Emma began sobbing in fear.
"Shut up!" hollered Devil Mask#1 as he struck Emma in the face.
Audrey felt boiling hot anger fill her. She suddenly leapt to her feet, charged at Devil Mask#1 and kicked him in the groin. "Leave my daughter alone you bastards!" she snapped at the men.
Devil Mask#2 suddenly came up from behind Audrey, grabbed her round the chest and threw the trembling brunette to the floor, he then took out some zip-ties and tied Audrey's hands behind her back, he then took out some duct-tape and stuck it over Audrey's mouth, ignoring her now muffled cries.
Audrey was now scared for her daughter and prayed that somebody would come.
The other five Devil Mask Men began going through the house and ransacking it, while Devil Mask#1 propped Audrey up against the bed. Audrey began to slowly wriggle her hands free.
"WHERE'S THE SAFE!" yelled Devil Mask#1 as he pulled out a gun and aimed it at the trembling brunette's face.
"We don't have a safe," stated Audrey around the gag, "The only valuables we have are my wedding band and some ruby earrings I borrowed from my mom, but that's all."
The Devil Mask Man grabbed Audrey by the hair and punched her in the face, giving the young woman a black eye. "LIAR!" he roared in fury, "Tell me where everything is, and I'll let you and the girl live."
"We don't have anything. I swear to God, we won't tell anyone." pleaded Audrey.
Devil Mask#1 ripped the tape off of Audrey's mouth, knelt down in front of her, lifted up his mask slightly and began trying to kiss her. Audrey suddenly headbutted the man, knocking him to the floor, the brunette then leapt to her feet and gave the man a roundhouse kick as he attempted to stand.
Audrey ran over to Emma, removed her gag and then untied her before hugging the teen in a protective manner. One of the other Devil Mask Men walked in, he then saw his boss lying unconscious on the floor, turned towards Audrey and growled in anger. "You bitch!" he snarled.
The man pulled out a penknife and charged towards the two. Audrey let go of Emma, and thinking quickly, dodged a couple of swipes from the knife before grabbing the weapon and wrenching it from the man's hand, Audrey then slammed the man into the wall. "Leave me and my daughter alone!" she growled.
Audrey then threw the guy to the floor; knocking him out. The brunette raced over to the bedside table, picked up the phone and dialled 9-1-1.
"9-1-1, what's your emergency?" asked the same operator from before.
"There's a gang of robbers wearing devil masks in my house," informed Audrey in a scared whisper, "Four of them are downstairs: I managed to take two of them out."
"We've traced your location; help is already on the way," informed the operator, "By the way, did you attempt to call before?"
"Yes, sorry about that," replied Audrey sheepishly, "I tried calling earlier, but the robbers caught me before I could talk."
"That's okay," replied the man, "listen, do you think you can keep this line open until help arrives?"
"Yes." replied Audrey.
"By the way, my name is Josh," replied the voice, "what's yours?"
"Audrey Daly," replied Audrey in a terrified whisper, "I'm here with my daughter, Emma."
"Okay, Audrey and Emma, you just hang tight; help is on the way." assured Josh.
Audrey suddenly yelped and dropped the phone as the four remaining men stormed in. One of the men saw the phone and yelled in anger. "She called the cops on us!" he hollered furiously.
The man charged towards Audrey, but she suddenly punched him in the face, sending him crashing to the ground. Audrey was about to turn around when another of the Devil Mask Men grabbed her round the chest and dragged the terrified woman backwards, Audrey began kicking and screaming, but it was no use. The man forced Audrey on to her knees. The two other men stood over her: one wielding a large kitchen knife; the other a baseball bat.
"Please, don't hurt me or my daughter." begged the brunette in a terrified whisper.
"Quiet, lady!" spat the man with the knife, "By the time the cops get here, we'll be long gone, but first, we're going to teach you and the little brat a lesson."
"No, no, please don't!" cried Audrey in terror.
In a flash, Audrey sprang to her feet, yanked the baseball bat from the third Devil Mask Man and whacked him in the side of the head, knocking him out. The Devil Mask with the knife screamed in fury and started swinging the knife about like a madman. Audrey dodged the first two swings, but was soon backed up against the wall, where the man managed to nick her on the left cheek. The brunette used her strength to whack the man in the stomach with the baseball bat, forcing him to drop the knife. The man then fell over.
"Enough!" barked a voice from nearby.
Audrey turned around, and her blood turned to ice at the sight in front of her. The last Devil Mask had one arm wrapped around Emma's neck and a gun pressed into her temple. Emma looked at her mom with wide, terrified eyes; she was whimpering.
"One wrong move, and I'll redecorate your walls with her blood!" hissed the man in a threatening tone.
"Please, just leave us alone," begged Audrey, tears welling up in her eyes, "You don't want to do this. I know about your childhoods, but this isn't the way; Emma has nothing to do with this."
"SHUT UP!" thundered the man.
Audrey slowly moved back towards the bed, and with one hand, gingerly picked up the book she'd been reading; she was now trembling with fear.
The Devil Mask Man laughed as he saw the book in Audrey's hand. "What are you going to do, read me to death?" he asked in a mocking tone.
"No." replied Audrey quietly.
And without warning, Audrey hurled the book at the robber. The book smacked him straight in the face, causing him to release his grip on Emma, who shoved him away and ran to her mom. The man swayed on the spot for a few moments before falling over.
Emma began to sob loudly. Audrey wrapped her arms around Emma in a hug, Emma hugged her back, just as sirens could be heard.
"Audrey, has dispatch arrived?" asked Josh in concern.
"Yes, they're coming; thank you." replied Audrey tearfully.
"You're welcome." replied Josh before ending the call.
Several Metro officers wearing face-masks arrived and took the gang away in handcuffs. A paramedic wearing a face-mask tended to the cut and black eye Audrey had received. Kevin soon returned with Gibbs, McGee and Delilah: all were caught up on what happened.
"Are you two okay?" asked Kevin in concern as he hugged his precious wife and daughter.
"We're fine." replied Audrey, who was still shaking.
"Mom was so awesome," said Emma in awe, "Those robbers never saw it coming."
"Well, you were in danger, so I guess my mama bear instincts just kicked in." said Audrey.
"Well, I think it's high time we got back to the twins." stated Delilah.
"Thanks for the night out, Kev," said McGee, "Glad those robbers will get put behind bars."
After making their goodbyes, McGee and Delilah put their face-masks back on and left. Gibbs turned to the Dalys. "See you around." he said dryly.
"Will we ever see you again?" asked Kevin.
"Who knows." replied the silver haired man before putting his face-mask back on and walking off.
Gibbs soon returned home, took his face-mask off, used hand sanitizer and sighed as he saw Marcie on his sofa, drinking more coffee. "So, how did it go?" she asked curiously.
"You deserted me." grumbled Gibbs in an irritated manner.
"I never said I was going to stick around," snarked Marcie, "Come on then, tell me."
Gibbs sighed; it was going to be a long night.
(AN) And that was Self-Defence 2: the longest one-shot NCIS fanfiction I've ever done so far; hope you all enjoyed.
So, my next NCIS fanfiction will be my remake of How the Elf Lord Made New Friends, which is set during Season 10.
Until then, this is TimeLordMaster108 signing out.