A/N: pet adoptions in our story are less complicated than Real Life.
"Thanks, Duck." Gibbs snapped his phone shut and stowed it away in his pocket while he smirked in Shyanne's direction, the two of them still watching Tim play with Pepper through the glass.
"What's so funny Mr. Gibbs?" Shyanne asked as she pulled Rex's leash to her chest to keep the excited terrier from going anywhere beyond her control. "Sit, Rex!"
Watching with a grin as the dog minded her perfectly; Gibbs answered her with a question. "You're still in on the surprise for Mr. Tim with me, right?"
"Yes!" She answered excitedly.
"Okay, well, then you can't say anything to him about any of this. So, I'll tell you what I'm smiling about - when we can both let the surprise out of the bag, all right?"
"Okay! Can we take Rex home now?" She asked impatiently.
"Let's let him play with Pepper for a few minutes first. That way we can see how they're going to get along." The shelter worker suggested
"OOH! Yes!" Shyanne agreed with the utmost excitement.
Turning to Gibbs, the worker said. "I can supervise while you go fill out the necessary paperwork? It'll make things much smoother and quicker for all of you that way."
"Sure." Gibbs watched protectively as Shyanne and Rex were taken inside the room with Tim and Pepper.
It was instant excited barking and tail wagging from both dogs. That is until Shyanne pulled sharply on Rex's leash while Tim calmly caressed Pepper's ears, speaking quietly to him before letting him go to play freely with Rex. There was no doubt about the younger man's ability to bond with the sheltie, Gibbs was even more sure of that now. Satisfied that things were under control, he headed back out to the main desk to get the paperwork done. Hell, he'd let them go inspect his house right now; if it meant Shyanne and Tim could both leave here with their new babies. He knew that wasn't practical though and that it would be best to settle one dog in at a time. Especially, since they wouldn't be staying in his house, anyway.
Thank goodness for Ducky. With Andrew's pending release from the hospital, that Gibbs was determined was going to happen, the need for the M.E.'s medical expertise in looking after the injured man precipitated the need to move this babysitting detail to the older man's house. That way, Shyanne could already be set up and comfortable there and able to be with her father from the beginning of his recovery which would help them both. It stood to reason that Rex should only have to get used to one temporary house himself, which meant taking him straight to Ducky's.
Pepper, on the other hand, would be temporarily at Ducky's until Tim's baby-sitting duties were over. At that point, the black and white bundle of energy and love would be settled in at Gibbs' for as long as Tim needed him to be. The Team Leader was actually looking forward to the little guy being around and Tim's visits to take care of him, too. It was high time the young man got to experience some genuine family bonding and even though he wasn't Tim's dad, he felt an overwhelming need to take up the slack as much as possible now, where he'd failed to ever do it before.
Moreover, if Tim resisted the idea because he didn't want to 'impose' on the boss, then Gibbs would have no trouble taking Pepper on as his own. Either way, it was a win-win plan for all of them. Chuckling to himself, Gibbs mentally flashed to his own backyard fence and realized it probably needed to be upgraded to one with smaller links in it. It only took him a minute to ask the ladies at the front desk for help in contacting Sears and putting in an order for a new backyard fence at his place, one to reinforce the one already there. Reassured that the home inspections could be done immediately as their workers who conducted them had the openings in their schedules, Gibbs sat and waited for them to update him on them.
As he waited, he continued to think on things. Ducky's backyard, he knew, was already secure enough for the terrier. The older man's inherited Corgi's had proven that before he'd found them new homes. IT was the perfect set up for adding two small dogs to their mix. Closing his eyes, he laid his head back for a moment.
The sound of his name being called, stirred Gibbs back to wakefulness. The receptionist informed him that both homes had more than met their standards with their already fenced in yards and the adoption of both dogs could proceed immediately.
With the paperwork finally done some ten minutes later, Gibbs was set free to take Rex home with him, Shyanne and Tim. Smiling, he walked back to the room he'd left them in and found Pepper already being walked back to his kennel by the shelter worker.
Gibbs hated to see the sad expression in Tim's eyes as the younger man watched the dog leave his sight, but knowing that it was only temporary helped keep him silent and abstain from bringing attention to his agent's handling of things.. Looking at Shyanne, he smiled. "Ready?"
"Yes!" The perky youngster exclaimed as she took the first step towards the way they'd come in.
"Okay. First stop, the pet store." Gibbs announced cheerily, knowing she'd love the idea.
"The one where they let the doggies come inside?" Shyanne asked hopefully.
"That's the one." Gibbs told her with a smile as they kept walking. Caught up in conversing with Shyanne, Gibbs failed to notice they were headed in the same direction the shelter worker had just gone.
"Yea! C'mon, Rex, we're gonna get you everything you need! We're gonna get you a bed and food dishes and water dishes and toys and what else are we gonna get Rex, Mr. Gibbs?" Shyanne exuberantly pushed to know.
Gibbs laughed; feeling light hearted even more when Tim laughed along with him. "We'll see when we get there, Shyanne. Okay?"
"Okay." She smiled and returned her attention to Rex who'd stopped to greet the dog in front of them.
Stopping with Rex, at Pepper's kennel now, Gibbs mentally head-slapped himself. They shouldn't have come down this row. He hadn't meant for them to because he hadn't wanted Tim to have to continue thinking about leaving the sheltie here. The plan was still to pick him up tomorrow after giving Rex one night to the house by himself.
Tim's feet froze as he took in the new sign on Pepper's kennel. "Adopted" He felt tears fill his eyes and he quickly looked away, blinking fast so neither the boss or Shyanne would notice. That figures. He let his guard down and let himself get close to a pet he couldn't have. It was his own fault. He knew…, he mentally head slapped himself and stoically moved on, forcing himself to refocus on Shyanne. "Rex minds you well, doesn't he, Shyanne?" He asked her, his tone rough and in need of clearing
The observant 5 year old had already began moving again, tugging Rex with her. But, now she stopped and looked at Tim with a scrutiny that was doing Gibbs proud. "Here, Mr. Tim! You take him for a minute!" She pushed the leash into his hand and held it there.
"Okay." Tim replied as he accepted the leash from her. "Why?" He asked her with a quiet curiosity Keeping things focused on her was the way to get through the moment and he could handle that with his eyes closed.
""You're gonna help me with him aren't you?" She asked as if he should already know the answer and better not dare to say no.
Huffing out a breath of laughter, Tim agreed. "Yeah. Yeah, I am, sweetie."
"Okay then!" Shyanne asserted. "He needs to listen to you, too!"
"Makes sense." Tim offered. "Okay, I'll walk him for a minute and see how he does with me. Will that work for you?"
"Yes!"
"Whattaya say?" Gibbs asked her pointedly.
"Please."
"Sure." Tim offered as he jiggled the leash and urged Rex to move forward.
Watching the little girl watch Tim, Gibbs knew she was up to something. But, he held his silence and waited for her to give it up on her own. Sure enough, as soon as Tim was out of sight around the next corner, she turned to him and said. "Rex needs to stay here and keep Pepper company."
Gibbs smiled at her with pride. She hadn't missed anything. Not only that, she cared and wanted to make others feel better. That much was obvious. Quietly, he encouraged her to say what she really meant by asking her questions. "That's not what you really mean, is it? You don't really want Rex to stay here anymore, do you?"
"No." She admitted quietly, her gaze dropping to the ground at her feet.
Gibbs smiled tenderly at her as he squatted down next to her and raised her little face up with his crooked finger under her chin. "What you really mean is that you think we should go ahead and bring Pepper home for Mr. Tim now, don't you? Tell him about the surprise?"
"Yes." She admitted. "Mr. Tim really likes him already and is really sad that he has to stay here."
"He's really sad because he thinks that sign means someone else has adopted him." Gibbs corrected her.
"We have to tell him that it was us!" Shyanne exclaimed. "He's too sad!"
"You know what, Shyanne? I agree with you." Gibbs told her. Standing up straight once more, he hollered out. "Hey, Tim! C 'mere a minute!"
Waiting for the young man to return, Gibbs turned to the shelter worker with a grin. "Can I write on that?' he pointed to the adopted sign on Peppers' kennel.
"Sure." She smiled back at him and handed him the pen off her clipboard.
Quickly he wrote on Pepper's sign and returned her pen to her just as Tim came around the corner with Rex who made a beeline for Pepper again.
"Boss?" Tim questioned as he looked down with sadness and affection towards the sheltie.
"See the sign?" Gibbs asked with a smirk.
Without looking, Tim frowned. "He's been adopted already, I know."
"Hey.' Gibbs quietly requested his agent look up at him.
"Boss?" Tim did as he was being asked and looked at his mentor.
"Maybe you should look at it again, Tim." The boss encouraged with a small smile.
Tim sighed and looked up at the sign, feeling his breath catch in his throat at the newly added word next to Pepper's name. McGee. He looked at the man in disbelief.
Gibbs nodded. "Was gonna surprise ya, but couldn't not tell you, seeing this."
"Boss, I….wow, I…." Tim could barely speak for the lump in his throat. He hoped the look on his face could speak for him.
His own expression full of both support and humor, Gibbs quietly nodded as he reassured him. "He can stay with me for as long as you need him to."
""Mr. Gibbs?" Shyanne asked politely.
"Yeah, Honey."
"I think we should let Mr. Tim have Pepper now." She said in as much of a matter of fact tone as she was capable of.
"You do, huh? Gibbs asked her with a smirk. Looking at Tim once more, he couldn't help but feel the hope vibrating off him. "Yeah, okay. Why not."
Tim's smile lit up the entire space around them. "Thanks, Boss!"
************NCIS***********
It was impossible to say who was more excited in the car ride to the pet store, Shyanne or the dogs. Gibbs had to force himself not to laugh aloud at the way Tim planted himself sideways in the front seat to keep a constant eye on the three backseat passengers. Having been fastened in with the seatbelts and told to 'stay, Rex behind Tim and Pepper behind Gibbs, it had started out calm, but had lasted for only a moment. As soon as Shyanne had reached for Rex, the terrier was right there for her, which of course, lead Pepper to find the need to be there for her too, both of them with their tails wagging and the small bodies wiggling with excitement as they licked her everywhere they could reach her.
Arriving at the pet store, they let the four legged children go potty in the grass outside before heading inside, Tim leading the way as he walked them directly to the isle with the harnesses on it. Lifting two for small dogs, he handed one to Gibbs and began fitting the other one around Pepper's frame. Once the harness was in place, he moved the leash down to the hook on the harness and smiled while rubbing Pepper's neck where the leash had been pulling him. "There. Much better, huh, boy?"
"Mr. Tim what is that?" Shyanne asked.
"It's a harness, Honey. It's easier on their necks and helps control them better without hurting their throats. The collar's fine for holding their tags, but's the only thing I use it for when I have a dog."
"Oh." The little girl responded. "Can you put that one on Rex now?"
"If you want him to have one, sure." Tim waited for her to nod before fitting her dog with the harness. Once that was done, they moved on through the store looking up and down every isle with doggie supplies on it - talking things over and choosing what to get. When they'd finished with the small stuff, they moved on to the food and the kennels and beds.
******************NCIS****************
Once settled back in the car, all three of the back seat passengers seemed to just fade out, both dogs and Shyanne immediately dropping off to sleep. Sharing a smile with Tim, Gibbs turned the car on and drove them not toward his house but in the direction of Ducky's. Tim, tired and not thinking beyond how tired he was, said nothing as he too laid his head back and dozed.
Glancing over at his surrogate son, Gibbs smiled. It was nice being able to spend time with Tim like this morning's outing. He should have been putting effort into doing this long ago like he'd done for Tony. The only trouble was Tony had come looking for the attention when he'd needed it. Tim never had and probably never would have, if this situation with Shyanne hadn't literally fallen into his lap the way it had. And for as much as his team liked to tease him that he was a mind reader, he truly wasn't.
The Team Leader wasn't even sure how he'd zeroed in on the missing part of Tim's life that equaled a father figure, but the more he watched him and paid attention to him, the more he could see it. Maybe it was the long ago noticed clue that Tim was hungry for Gibbs' approval and even for Tony's despite the stuff between them since the Team Leader had given Tony carte blanche to train Tim how he'd seen fit. And while Gibbs was no longer seeing the good idea in that way of training, he did like that it had given him at least that much insight into what made Tim tick on the inside.
Taking a brief moment to look behind him at the sleeping kids, both two legged and four legged, Gibbs softly chuckled to himself. Nothing brings out the kid in a person like getting a new dog. The intensity in which Tim had immediately bonded to Pepper convinced the Team Leader even more that he was on the right track with believing Tim needed some serious time bonding with a father figure. That intensity spoke of sacrifice and a lost treasured pet or two, parts of some childhoods that when experienced, are never easy to put away or left forgotten somewhere for very long.
Gibbs had seen that first hand in the way it had taken Tim all of a minute to completely fall in love with Pepper. Truth be told, he'd never intended to leave the shelter without the sheltie when he'd seen Tim's reaction to him. It had been a tense moment for him when he'd coaxed Shyanne away from the black and white dog and talked her into choosing another dog for herself so that Mr. Tim could have Pepper. He'd been relieved when she'd happily accepted the idea without any problem at all. Knowing she'd probably chosen Rex for his similar coloring with his mostly white coat broken up with a spot of brown here and there, as well as his similar coat style, that of soft hair, rather than rough fur , had him giving her even more kudos for being such a bright child.
Speaking of which, Gibbs pulled his phone out of his shirt pocket and hit the speed dial number for the hospital, knowing the number Tim had programmed into it for him would have him speaking directly to the nurse's station outside Andrew's room. Without wasting words or letting his voice get above quiet, he asked for and got an update on the injured man. Sighing with resignation, he closed his phone and put it back in his shirt pocket. No change. The poor guy was still fighting the infection. That meant still no visitors. Damn it!
The trouble was Gibbs meant what he'd told Vance. Shyanne needed to see her daddy every day. They'd just do what Tim had made sure she'd been allowed to do that first night and let her see him through the window of his room. That would be better than nothing. All they needed to do was get the dogs settled in at Ducky's first but not leave them alone. Crap. Okay, well Tim could take Shyanne to see her daddy. Gibbs could keep an eye on Ducky's place while the two four legged additions learned the ropes and the rules.
With that settled on his mind, Gibbs was finally able to relax while he drove the rest of the way to Ducky's. He enjoyed the nearly complete silence, broken only with the snoring of the dogs. With a rueful slight shake of his head, he asked himself how this had happened. What had made him think of taking the kids to the animal shelter, he can't recall. But, one thing was for sure, he was glad that he'd done it.
Arriving at Ducky's a short ten minutes later, Gibbs turned the car off and just sat in the silence, letting the napping souls continue to catch their rest. Shyanne had only been asleep for about thirty minutes and really needed at least another 30 to make it a nap worth taking for her. With that firm thought in mind, he laid his own head back against the seat and closed his eyes.
*********NCIS*********
"…quiet, Rex!" Shyanne's not so quiet admonishment of her dog, coming from some distance away from the car had Gibbs' eyes opening in a flash as he lifted his head to search for her. Seeing her sitting on the ground all the way across the front yard as if trying to keep from waking him while she tucked up against Tim's lap, both of them securely holding their dog's leash, had him letting out a whoosh of air as the worry left him.
Without disturbing them, he got out of the car, walked to Ducky's side gate, and unlocked it. Once he had that done and had opened the gate, he called their attention to him. "Backyard's open. Let's let 'em settle in."
Shyanne jumped up and ran with Rex to the backyard, not looking back for a moment. Tim followed more sedately, a smile on his face as he watched the little girl's enthusiasm and energy pour out around her. Stepping inside the backyard, Tim stooped down at the knees and affectionately loved on Pepper. "Okay, boy. Go have some fun." Patting him on his shoulder, Tim unhooked the leash and stepped back.
Shyanne mimicked what Tim had just done and laughed outright at Rex's immediate choice to tackle Pepper unaware from behind. Together the dogs romped around the back yard without a care in the world.
"C'mon, let's get the car unloaded." Tim told Shyanne as he lead her back out of the yard and locked the gate behind him. Together they joined Gibbs at the car, loading up the bags of stuff they'd gotten from the pet store while Gibbs himself carried the dogs' beds and kennels.
"Do you live here too, Mr. Gibbs?" Shyanne asked.
"No, Sweetie. Dr. Mallard lives here. When Daddy gets out of the hospital, you'll both be staying here with him so he can help take care of your daddy."
"OH. Wait! What about Mr. Tim?" Shyanne asked sadly.
"Oh, he'll be here too, for as long as Daddy needs his help taking care of you." Gibbs reassured her.
"Oh. Okay." She carried another bag into the house and came back outside. This time instead of returning to the car, she sat down on the front step, her folded arms on her knees and her head down on her arms.
"Shyanne? What's wrong?" Tim asked as he came from the car, his arms loaded down with the big bags of dog food they'd gotten.
"I want Mr. Gibbs to stay here too!" She pouted.
Smiling sympathetically, Tim deferred that problem to the boss already within hearing distance of the problem, as he himself sidestepped the little girl and headed into the house.
Gibbs set the bag down that he'd been carrying and sat down next to their pint sized guest. "I have to get back to work, Shyanne. Mr. Tim and I can't both keep missing work."
Shyanne raised her head up and looked at him, tears leaking out of her eyes. "Oh."
"If you want, I'll come visit."
"YES!" She firmly replied, her expression serious.
"Okay, then. I promise. Even after your daddy's here with you, I'll come visit you."
"Every day!"
Gibbs chuckled and shook his head. "Can't promise you that."
"Why not?" She wanted to know.
"Because, Honey, sometimes our work takes all night."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Ooh." Shyanne said in awe.
"So, I promise you that I will come visit when I can. How's that?"
"Okay." She agreed solemnly, obviously less than thrilled with that compromise
"Besides, you'll hardly miss me. You'll have Rex keeping you company and Pepper and Mr. Tim. You're gonna help Mr. Tim take care of Pepper, right?"
"Yes!" Shyanne exclaimed.
"There. See? And Mr. Tim will be helping you take care of Rex. And Dr. Mallard will be taking care of Daddy and soon you two will get to go back home and let Rex see his home."
"Yes, yes. yes!" Shyanne celebrated as she got to her feet and jumped around excitedly.
"Yeah?" Gibbs double checked with her.
"Yeah!" She vowed.
"Okay, Good. Now, I think the dogs are hungry. Should we feed them you think?" Gibbs teased her as he held the front door open for her with one hand while scooping up the bag he'd set down with the other.
"Yes!" She exclaimed as she flounced into the house.
"Yeah. I think so too." The older man chuckled, closing the front door behind himself and locking it.
*************************NCIS******************
Twenty minutes later found both dogs contentedly snoozing once more, this time in the shade they'd found in the backyard. Tim took that time to watch Shyanne sit down beside them, idly petting them . Clear across the yard, sitting in the lounge chairs on Ducky's porch, he and Gibbs remained silent a moment longer. Then it dawned on the younger man. They'd forgotten to check up on Andrew.
Turning to ask the boss, Tim found himself already under scrutiny. "Already called them before we got here. No change. But she'll be able to see him through the window."
"Okay. I'll take her." Tim offered.
Gibbs nodded as he gestured toward the keys on the table beside him. "See ya when ya get back."
Tim scooped up the keys and walked across the yard, talking quietly to the little girl when he reached her. "C'mon, Shyanne. Let's go visit Daddy now."
Quietly, as if not willing to wake her new baby up, Shyanne got to her feet, took Tim's hand and walked with him through the yard and out of the fence, waiting patiently while he locked it behind himself and headed toward the car with her.
*********************NCIS*******************
"He's really sleeping?" Shyanne asked sadly, as she watched her Daddy remain motionless through the window of his ICU room when they'd reached it some thirty minutes later and checked in with Andrew's doctor who'd had no new news to give them.
"Yes, Honey. He really is sleeping. I promise." Tim told her with all due seriousness as he hugged her just a little tighter to his chest while she faced her father's window.
With tears beginning to slide down her face, Shyanne quietly said. "Get better soon, Daddy. I miss you."
