Disclaimer: I do not own anything, the characters all belong to the creator of the show. I just own the idea and the plot for this story. As well as my OCs AJ Gibbs, his ex-wife Amber and his kids, as well as Jason DiNozzo, his wife Maria and their kids. They are mine as well as Mia and Gabriel DiNozzo. I don't own the characters from NCIS: LA or Hawaii Five-0. They belong to their respective show creators.

A/N: Hey yo I'm back coming atcha with an all new part 2 to chapter 7. I know it's been long awaited and I hope it's all what you were hoping for. Regular updates should be every other Sunday. School, work and life permitting of course.

A/N: I know I mentioned Governor Denning a few chapters ago, when Hetty was talking to Gibbs, but he is no longer Governor and won't be any more throughout my story. The new Governor of Hawaii (In Hawaii Five-0 is Keiko Mahoe). So that is who I will be referring to when I talk about the Governor if I don't first mention her by name.

This is a pretty Gibbs centric chapter and the ramifications of his actions of as late in the story. Just wanted to give you all a heads up. Tony and his new team will finally meet up in the next chapter and things really start rolling.

Oh, also if anyone has any case ideas, or anything they want to see in the story maybe with their specific character shoot me a PM, I'm pretty open minded and will try and fit it in if I can. I've got a complete plot, just want to see what you all have.

That is all onward to Chapter 7 Part 2.


Goodbye Washington Hello Hawaii

Chapter 7 Part 2

It had been a month since Tony left and Gibbs was a downright mess. A month and two weeks to be exact. He couldn't function, and the SFA's that Vance had been sending over to his team were adequate at best. There was a saying of 'you don't know how good you had it until it's gone'. 'It' in this particular case being Tony. Though his new SFA Clayton Marcus wasn't actually half bad. He was a Marine, who served with a MARSOC team before he retired, and applied for a job as an NCIS Special Agent. He rose through the ranks, through different offices and found himself in the position as Gibbs' new SFA. Now Marcus had quite the shoes to fill.

If he was being honest with himself he didn't want to fill Agent DiNozzo's shoes, he didn't want to be his replacement. He wanted to be his own person, earn his place on Gibbs' team. Earn the other mans' trust. Trust with Gibbs was hard to come by these days. Marcus couldn't worry about that right now though they had a case to solve.

"We found the perp who killed Petty Officer Harris." Gibbs informed them. "He's holed up in a house at this address." The team grabbed their gear and headed out to the address.

Tim and Marcus took the front door and waited for Gibbs and Bishop to get to the back door and wait for their signal. "We're a go, breach." Gibbs gave the simple order. Marcus opened the door and Tim followed his lead.

"NCIS." Both Tim and Marcus announce as they walk slowly through the house, clearing the rooms systematically.

"Where is this guy? Are we sure Gibbs has the right info?" Tim asked, as they walked toward the back room where they heard noises. Gibbs and Bishop met up with Tim and Marcus at the back-bedroom door.

Gibbs held up two fingers to his lips to silence McGee. Bishop counted down from three before they breached the room. Gibbs was the first one through the door, followed by Bishop, Marcus and then McGee.

The perp Todd Manning was an imposing man large brought shoulders and muscles upon muscles. "Freeze NCIS." Gibbs yelled. Todd looked up sharply at the four figures in the room. Saw their guns and badges and bolted, straight through the window in the room.

"After him." Marcus yelled. Bishop was the first one in pursuit, she went through the same window Manning did. Getting cuts and scrapes as she did from the broken glass. Gibbs, Marcus and McGee were hot on her heels. As the three male agents rounded the corner of the alley, they saw the seemingly lifeless body of Agent Bishop on the ground as well as their perp Todd Manning. "Bishop!" Marcus called out. She wasn't moving.

It's like it all happened in slow motion for Gibbs then, he saw Tim walking over to Manning and saw Manning had one bullet shaped hole in his forehead. He could easily piece together what had gone down. Bishop had caught up to Manning she tried to apprehend him, there'd been a scuffle and Manning ended up fighting Bishop. Bishop lost then, Manning shot himself in the head.

Marcus called for an ambulance at their location. He'd found out Bishop was actually still breathing. "Everything's going to be okay Bishop you're going to be just fine." Gibbs could hear Marcus telling Bishop trying to soothe her.

All too soon Bishop and Manning were taken away in separate ambulances and the three remaining agents had to find their own way to the hospital. He couldn't lose another agent not like this. Not when he could've prevented it. If he'd just been a bit faster. He would've gotten there in time.

Gibbs was 65 years old. He was at retirement age, yet he was far from the actual act. As long as he was still breathing and good still shoot is Sig in a straight line, he was going to serve.

Something broke inside Gibbs in that instant. He was suddenly overwhelmed by memories of all the times he'd felt powerless…watching in MTAC as the Cape Fear exploded, being unable to catch Harper Dearing in time to prevent the NCIS bombing, facing down Luke Harris as the boy shot him twice and left him bleeding in the dirt. A floodgate opened in his mind, releasing images of all the times he'd seen someone he cared about dead or dying, broken and bleeding, and been powerless to prevent it. Tony drowning in his lungs, Kate on the rooftop with blood spreading under her head in a grotesque halo, Jenny's bullet-riddled body, Mike stabbed and left to die in the rain-flooded street in front of his home…and so many more. There were far too many; going all the way back to his beautiful girls, and his son almost loosing AJ when his convoy was struck by an IED a few years ago. It was a bad op, and AJ still won't talk much about it to this day. All Gibbs knows is that it was bad and his son was one of two survivors out of eighteen men. He could have lost his son that day, but he didn't he came home later that year. He definitely didn't come back the same as when he had left. That was for sure.

Gibbs sat on the gurney in the ER, his emotions in turmoil. He thought he tweaked his knee, and McGee saw him, and told him he should get it checked out. He was worried about Bishop and waiting for word on her condition. He also felt shock and confusion over his earlier loss of control. Pulled from his thoughts as the cubicle curtain was pulled aside, Gibbs looked up in anticipation of the doctor only to be disappointed as Director Vance walked in. "Leon," he greeted.

"Dammit Gibbs! That is not how pursuits are supposed to end. We needed Manning alive. Now he's lying in the morgue! What did you think was going to happen?" Vance shouted.

"He shot himself Leon, what were we supposed to do. Bishop was the one closest to him." 'She shouldn't have been though. I should have been there.' Gibbs was really beating himself up over this.

"Your case is a bust. The suspect you identified as having killed Petty Officer Harris is dead. The family doesn't get the intended closure they wanted. This case is shut. Although as of your recent actions I believe I need to reevaluate your position as lead agent of MCRT."

That was shocking to Gibbs he was actually speechless he didn't know what to say besides, "Leon."

"No Gibbs, you can't weasel your way out of this one this time. I've let too many things slide with you and your team, because your team always got results. Not anymore Agent Gibbs. You've forced my hand, there will be changes from here on out."

As if the Director had suddenly remembered why else he was standing there he said, "First things first. Bishop is awake and will be fine…minor concussion from being knocked down by Manning. What's your status?" Vance queried.

Gibbs closed his eyes and sighed in relief that Bishop was not seriously injured. "Waiting for a scan; may have re-injured my knee." Gibbs hedged, not wanting to admit the knee had been bothering him before.

"Report, Gibbs. What the hell happened out there?" Vance asked sharply.

"I honestly can say I don't know, Leon"

"You had better have a better answer for me later Gibbs we will be talking about your actions or rather inactions further. I feel the hospital ED isn't the right place for this kind of talk."

"As soon as you get the knee looked at I want you to go straight home, and try and relax, I'll inform Agents Marcus, and McGee of your status."

Gibbs just looked at the Director and nodded slightly. Leon turned on his heel to leave the silver haired agent to this thoughts. The team's going to be down two agents now, due to injury. This did not bode well for Team Gibbs whatsoever. Not like things had been going well for them as of late anyway, but that was beside the point.

Gibbs adjusted his crutches and hobbled out of the elevator. He was not looking forward to this 'talk' that Leon wanted to have. He supposed now he had to sit there and take it as the Director handed down some sort of reprimand for his past actions. As he approached the office, Vance's secretary called to him, "Go on in Agent Gibbs, he's expecting you."

Gibbs nodded his thanks to her and shuffled into the office on his crutches, awkwardly closing the door behind him. He and Vance eyed each other for a few tense moments, then Vance gestured toward the comfortable chairs at the conference table, out of deference to Gibbs' braced knee.

Irritated, Gibbs fired his opening salvo. "Nice day, Director."

"You know damn well you're not here for small talk, Gibbs," Vance fired right back. "You're here so I can properly talk to you about your actions and lack of adherence to this agencies policies and procedures."

Without giving Gibbs a chance to respond, he continued, "I had IA look into past transgressions there were a lot of them. I told you at the hospital that I ignored your transgressions because of the results you got and didn't meddle with your team, but not anymore Gibbs. IA have found that your suitability for field duty at the time of Bishop's accident with Manning was questionable due to a pre-existing knee injury and your physical limitations contributed to the injury of a fellow agent." he concluded.

Gibbs managed to suppress a flinch at being reminded of Bishop's injury, which he now recognized as a trigger for his loss of control. "Fine, Director. If you've got some sort disciplinary letter or reprimand for me to sign off on, can we get on with it?"

Vance blinked in disbelief at Gibbs' disinterest and arrogance. He was apparently unwilling to give weight to the seriousness of his circumstances. That was about to change, Vance thought dismally.

"I don't appreciate the flippancy, Gibbs. I told you to take this seriously." Vance said sharply. "The agency is likely going to be sued over this, which by the way, has gotten the attention of SecNav. With the initial findings of IA, I'm forced into a position of taking punitive action against you."

"You're caving because of SecNav and threats from a bunch of shark lawyers?" Gibbs asked scornfully.

"No, I'm not," Vance replied emphatically. "I'm acting as your superior. You are being disciplined for gross violations of agency procedure. There's no possibility of completely excusing what you've done in the past, nor can I condone it or pretend these events didn't happen."

Gibbs at least had the good grace to wince and look down.

"It's not all bad news," Vance continued cautiously. "IA also found that there are factors that require further consideration. Information has come to light that may be accepted as medically mitigating circumstances." Gibbs finally seemed to be paying attention, Vance noticed.

"What would that be?" Gibbs asked in confusion.

"Doctor Mallard has prepared a report which predates the incident." Vance explained. "It expresses concern for your fitness for duty and indicates you are presenting possible signs of PTSD. IA's review of statements from your team corroborate his findings."

"What?" Gibbs snarled, feeling betrayed by his oldest friend, and his team. The team he considered family.

"Don't even start on them, Gibbs," Vance snapped in a raised voice, heading off his agent's building rant. "Gibbs, you should thank your team and Doctor Mallard for their depositions. You should also be grateful for Doctor Mallard's influence with IA, because it's the only thing saving your ass from being fired immediately." he said flatly. "You better be thankful for all of them, because I'm well aware how poorly you've handled things since DiNozzo left. They're all more loyal than you deserve."

"Points taken, Leon," Gibbs replied, his anger deflated as how close he'd come to being terminated began to hit home. "So what's next?" he asked in a resigned voice.

"As things stand, I've persuaded IA to hold off on a disciplinary hearing or further punitive action until you undergo a complete fit for duty examination including a full psych eval. As a condition of continued employment, you will undergo anger management counseling and any other treatment recommended by the evaluator."

Gibbs grimaced and nodded. "Anything else?"

"Yes there's more," Vance said then hesitated, knowing he was about to deliver a heavy blow to the older man. "Taking into account your past performance record which is for the most part exemplary, and that there are no complaints of excessive force, you are suspended for one month. Furthermore, you are removed from field duty pending the outcome of your fit for duty evaluation. If found fit, you will be reinstated and reassigned to another position." Vance knew his next words would be devastating to the proud man in front of him. He continued in a sympathetic tone, "Gibbs…your age waiver for field agent status is rescinded. Permanently. I'm sorry."

Later that night, Gibbs sat on his sofa and stared into the fireplace. He could admit now he'd been struggling with feelings of irrational anger and resentment since the shooting that nearly killed him. He'd continually chosen to deal in denial knowing he had issues, and not to examine the reasons for them or to face them until he absolutely had to.

Now finally, he recognized them for what they were and that he had to confront the reasons for them if he wanted his life back to normal. He thought about those who'd tried to help him before it was too late, two men in particular. He felt a sudden wave of remorse over the complete break in his once unshakable friendship with DiNozzo, and his starring role in that break. He also regretted the coolness that had developed lately between him and AJ. He and his son had never really seen eye to eye on a lot of things.

More so when it came to feeling and emotions and how to deal with them. His own son had PTSD, and now he was starting to see the same symptoms in himself. It seemed a lot of people had seen the signs before Gibbs himself had. They'd all tried to help, but he just pushed them away. That was how he coped. He was realizing that pushing those away who cared wasn't the right thing to do.

Now he could admit to himself that felt the loss of that friendship and father and son bond keenly, but knew he'd driven the wedge between them himself. He pushed them away and still they'd tried to warn him. He hadn't listened to either of them and today, the consequences of his actions then and now just became appallingly real.

Gibbs was pulled from his dark reflections by the sound of footfalls on the front porch steps. He'd made it clear he didn't want visitors and had even gone so far as to lock the doors to make his point. It had worked. Ducky, Abby, and the others had stopped coming…until now.

He ignored the knocking at the door and adjusted the icepack laid over his bad knee. He winced in pain as the sound of a key in the lock had him turning sharply toward the door. Only one person had that key these days. Angry now, he snatched the ice pack that slipped off at his sharp movement and he readied himself to tear Ducky a new one. "Dammit Ducky, I told you to stay the hell away from me," he said loudly.

"Well, it's a good thing I'm not Ducky then, isn't it?" an unexpected male voice answered.

He looked up in shock to see Marcus standing there, his gaze inscrutable.

"What are you doing here?" Gibbs demanded, glaring resentfully at the man who'd first been forced on him by Vance as his SFA, and had now taken over leading his team.

"I'm not sure I should be really," Marcus said ruefully.

"Ya think?" Gibbs snapped as he went back to adjusting the icepack over his knee.

"I know," Marcus returned curtly. "You and I have had this uneasy truce thing going on for a while, but aren't exactly friends, so why am I here? At first, I was content to let you sit here in the mess you made.

"Why don't you do just that?" Gibbs asked angrily. "Now get out, leave the damn key, and tell Ducky I don't appreciate him handing it over."

"No can do, Gibbs. I got a nagging feeling when you shut the rest of your team out and started pushing back about the fit for duty eval and therapy. Call it a compulsion if you will; and a sense that I owed you an apology."

"What? What the hell for? Gibbs asked, honestly startled at Marcus' words. "You're not the one on suspension here," Gibbs said. "And if you're not going to leave, sit the hell down so I don't have to keep straining my neck looking up at you." he continued, gesturing impatiently at the armchair next to the sofa.

Marcus was a little surprised at the invitation to stay. He nodded in thanks then removed his jacket and threw it over the back of the armchair. He sat down, speaking as he did. "You're far from a screw up Gibbs, but your reputation preceded you."

"What reputation would that be and what the hell does it have to do with anything?" Gibbs asked irritably.

Expecting Gibbs' surliness and unfazed by it, Marcus answered. "You know…the bear with a sore head, second "B", grouchy, unreasonable, and impatient hard ass. Take your pick of expressions used to describe your more charming behavior."

Gibbs narrowed his eyes and glared.

Marcus just smiled infuriatingly and kept ignoring Gibbs' ill mood. "That led me to assume that you were just being your normal lovable self," he said sarcastically. "If long-time members of your team didn't catch it, how would I?"

"Catch what, Marcus? Are you going to get to your point sometime tonight?"

"The point is, Gibbs, I should have known what was up with you."

Gibbs shifted uncomfortably. "Just what is it you think is up with me?"

"I'll explain your getting up there in age Gibbs maybe it's time to holster your weapon for good." Marcus said.

Gibbs crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow.

"I'm serious Gibbs. It may have been just a concussion for Bishop today and you messing up your knee, but it could be worse in the future. Vance doesn't want that to happen."

Gibbs looked down and ground out, "I don't care what you think is good for me, Marcus." He felt Marcus' assessing gaze on him and wondered what the man thought he was seeing.

"Then why are you avoiding the fact. Why are you hiding from the truth? What's got you so scared?"

Gibbs remained stubbornly silent, prompting Marcus to press him again.

"You're afraid you'll be seen as useless less of man is that it?" Marcus asked quietly. He watched the proud man struggle for a moment as some inner conflict showed clearly on his face, and felt a growing empathy for him. Then Gibbs finally gave a small shake of his head.

"I thought as much," Marcus said. "I should have known because I've seen it before. If I had, the incident that landed you in this mess might have been avoided and that's why I wanted to apologize."

"Seen what, Marcus?"

"Signs of PTSD, Gibbs." Marcus asserted simply.

"Thank you for that diagnosis, Doctor Marcus." Gibbs said snidely. "Consult with Ducky on that, did you? You don't know anything about me."

Marcus went on, undaunted. "Sure I do; probably more than you think."

"Look Marcus, I don't want you here anymore than the others. I don't need anything from any of you, much less an apology." Gibbs' voice was controlled and low, but still sounded vaguely threatening.

"Keep telling yourself that. You've been doing that a long time, right?" Marcus continued, his voice insistent. "Telling yourself everything's fine; you got it all under control when nothing could be further from the truth. You need to stop with the bullshit Gibbs, because you're not fooling anyone but yourself anymore."

"How would you know?"

Marcus went on with calm confidence. "Surely you see your reactions aren't entirely under your control. Like I said, I know because I've seen it. I've seen it, I've lived it, and I've been where you are now."

Anger faded and a flicker of interest appeared in Gibbs expression. "Something happened to you," Gibbs asserted. "In the Corps?" he guessed, giving the younger man a searching look.

Marcus nodded somberly. "My last tour in Iraq. My unit was on patrol when our convoy hit an IED. As help arrived, we tried to triage the injured and secure the scene, and then we came under sniper and mortar fire. The whole thing was an ambush." Marcus looked down for a moment, lost in his own memories, then continued. "It was bad Gibbs, and you're looking at one of just two people who lived to tell the tale. Two, Gibbs. Just two…out of eighteen" he finished with a hitch in his voice.

Gibbs sat silently and then it dawned on him. One of two out of eighteen. AJ was one of two out of eighteen members. It couldn't be a coincidence could Marcus be the second survivor. Gibbs didn't believe in coincidences though.

"You're him, your that Marcus." Gibbs said. He dropped his head back against the couch and closed his eyes, giving Marcus the illusion of privacy to compose himself after what he'd just shared. It seemed they had a little more in common than he thought.

"So AJ did talk about me?"

"He did vaguely, never said your first name though, never gave elaborate details."

Gibbs wondered why the other man didn't have anyone to go home too.

"And afterward?" Gibbs prompted hesitantly after a few moments.

"Afterward, I was a mess." Marcus said. "Hurting, angry, and vengeful. Haunted by the men and women we lost that day. I hated everyone and everything around me and made sure they knew it. No one could possibly understand, right?"

Gibbs just nodded. There were no words for something like this.

"I refused help and isolated myself. I was a complete ass to everyone who crossed my path. Kind of like you've been doing," Marcus added while eyeing Gibbs meaningfully. "I let it go on too long, got discharged. Even after that, I had family who refused to give up on me though I gave them every reason to. More importantly, they refused to let me give up on myself."

Gibbs just stared at first, transfixed by Marcus' story. Then he shook his head, "Being a field agent is all I know. If I can't do that, I think I'm done at NCIS ."

Marcus laughed ruefully, breaking the tense and serious mood. "That's a pretty short-sighted view. You're not done unless you really want to be. You're done in the field, yes. To be perfectly frank, you should have been before now. After the Corps, I figured out how to make a difference another way. It won't be easy, but you could too if that's what you want. I hope it is because you can still do a world of good."

Gibbs flinched as he recalled Tony saying almost exactly the same thing to him; trying to get him to see he had options other than field work. Back then, he hadn't been ready to hear anything Tony was trying to tell him.

"You know, I've read the files from the Calling case. You've got some issues to work through Gibbs, based on that alone. I suspect there's a little more to it than that." Marcus said.

Gibbs looked at Marcus sharply, wondering what else he knew.

Marcus read his suddenly tense posture and knew what Gibbs had to be thinking.

He held a hand to stop the outburst that looked to be building, judging by Gibbs' dark expression. "Gibbs, I haven't been looking back any further nor do I intend to, if that's what you're thinking. I know there's something there; something big. I don't need to know what it is. All I'm saying is you have to face these things and work through them if you're going to get back on the job. People are bending over backward to make that happen and you have to meet them halfway."

Marcus waited until Gibbs seemed to relax into listening mode again, and then continued.

"Like I said, you aren't done unless that's what you want. Right now, Vance is working on finding a new assignment for you here in DC. The thing is, you have to want it and you have to work for it. That means getting your head right first."

"Vance is really doing that? And when was he going to mention it to me?" Gibbs huffed.

"Probably when you get off your ass, stop feeling sorry for yourself, and started making your therapy appointments." Marcus said pointedly. "Otherwise, there's no reason to. You'll be forced into retirement."

Gibbs just leaned his head back against the couch, irked at being reminded of Vance's ultimatum.

Marcus compressed his lips to keep from smiling, knowing exactly what brought on Gibbs' irritated look. He switched tactics.

"Did you know Bishop and McGee were both considering transfers before you went off the rails?"

"What! Why wouldn't they come to me with something like that?" he asked, taken aback at that revelation.

"You were part of the problem, Gibbs. You may be dealing with undiagnosed PTSD, but I can tell you it indirectly affects everyone around you, particularly those closest to you. I suspect you realize that now; its partly why I was assigned here, isn't it?"

Gibbs narrowed his eyes at the reference to DiNozzo, but didn't answer.

Marcus went on, ignoring the icy look. "They know now there was more to what was going on with you than met the eye. I had a lot of people pulling for me back then Gibbs, or I wouldn't be here today. You have a lot of people in your corner too, whether you like it or not. They may not get what you're going through, but they're still in your corner, God knows why."

Gibbs shook his head, overwhelmed with emotions he couldn't sort out and didn't know what to do with.

"C'mon, Gibbs," Marcus pressed on, "they want to be there for you; to help in whatever way you'll let them. Don't you think it's time to meet them halfway?"

Marcus watched the inner struggle play across Gibbs' expression. In his isolation, he hadn't needed to keep his stoic mask intact and seemed to have lost the knack. Marcus could see Gibbs still wasn't ready to talk about this with his inner circle.

"Look, you may not be ready for that as things stand now." Marcus backed down a bit, not wanting to push too hard on that point.

"They haven't given up on you, not yet. They understand now that there were reasons for your behavior that weren't entirely under your control. But if things don't change, it won't be much longer before you put them back on the edge of making that decision." Gibbs got the message. Marcus was telling him in no uncertain terms he was beginning to succeed in his attempts to alienate the others.

"You can sit here and go on as you have been if that's what you want, with no job and eventually, no one to give a damn. No offense Gibbs, but handling this yourself doesn't seem to be working for you anymore. You don't get a say in how PTSD affects you, but you can learn to manage it. So you have to decide if you've given up on yourself, or if you're ready to face the world again."

Marcus took a breath and fired his final volley.

"Time's running out, Gibbs. You've got a decision to make. Gonna have to call the doc soon if you care at all about salvaging your career at NCIS. As far as the rest of it…well, I wouldn't be where I am today if I hadn't given the docs and myself a chance. Maybe it's what you need and maybe it isn't; but you won't know until you give it a shot."

"Alright Marcus, you've made your points,"

Gibbs conceded. "I'll consider what you've said."

"Will you?" Marcus asked, side-eyeing him.

Gibbs rolled his eyes and grouched "Yes, dammit."

"Alright then, my work here is done!" Marcus said, grinning widely at him and Gibbs was reminded painfully of Tony in that brief moment. Marcus stood and picked up the jacket draped over the chair back. Gibbs watched the younger man leave. He waited until the engine couldn't be heard anymore and then took out of phone. Dialing one number he knew by heart.


Well that's part 2 how'd you all like it. Tell me what you thought. Hit that review button down below and leave a comment.

Questions: What do you think Gibb's new assignment/positions should be if Vance goes that route?

Do you think Gibbs will have a better understanding of his son AJ after the talk with Marcus?

Until Chapter 8 folks Preview: Back in Hawaii where Tony has a semi-serious conversation with Steve and Tony finally meets his new team. What do you think will happen? What do you want to see happen on Tony's first day with his new team? What kind of case should be thrust upon Tony and his team.