Once again, many many thanks for your reviews, guys; although not as many as normal for 12.

Sorry this is so late; it turned out I had another assignment I didn't know about. It's all ongoing, so the updates might be a bit slower from now on.

Still, I hope you like the new chap…

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Chapter 13: Left Behind

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McGee entered the bullpen for the first time since Tony's funeral with trepidation. He'd spent his week off comforting Abby as much as he could, in between trying to deal with his own grief. His typewriter had been seeing a lot of use while he tried to sort through his emotions.

The young agent had never suffered a loss like this before; and he certainly hadn't been prepared to deal with it. It just seemed so unbelievable; Tony had been so much larger than life, and now he was gone in the blink of an eye.

Despite his teasing ways, McGee had looked up to DiNozzo. The older man's vast experience, uncanny instincts and willingness to share his knowledge had helped him become better at his job. And McGee wasn't sure he'dve got as far as he had with Gibbs without Tony's help, insults and competition. He just wished he'd had a chance to thank him…

"Morning, McGee," said Kate, from her desk, sounding like she had a heavy head cold.

"Morning, Kate. How are you doing?"

"Ok, I guess," she replied. "You?"

"Bout the same. Have you seen Gibbs? I expected him to be here..."

"No; he must be with Abby, or Ducky, or the Director, maybe."

The pair powered up their computers and began sifting through the past week's junk email in silence. Both studiously avoided looking in the direction of Tony's untouched desk. The American Pie coffee mug seemed strangely alone on its surface with a few haphazardly stacked files.

"Special Agent Todd; Special Agent McGee," said Director Morrow, stopping by Gibbs' desk.

"Director Morrow," said Kate in surprise; he hardly ever ventured down to the bullpen. "We haven't seen Gibbs yet. Were you looking for him?"

"No; I just stopped by to tell you he won't be in today."

"Gibbs is taking more time off?" McGee blurted out. "Sir," he added hastily.

"Yes, Agent McGee, he is. And without complaint, for once. Since he hasn't taken a non-compulsory day in over five years I've granted him indefinite leave. His absence leaves your team two men short; so the two of you will be working on cold cases and assisting other teams until Gibbs' return. I know those aren't your favourite activities, but under the circumstances…"

"We understand, Director," said Kate. "Thank you for informing us."

They waited until he had stepped into the elevator, probably heading for Ducky's domain, before McGee said it.

"Where d'you think Gibbs is?"

Kate sighed. "Probably in his basement, getting drunk and working on his boat," she replied. "This has really hit him hard."

"Hit us all hard, Kate."

"But it's different for Gibbs. He's a protector by nature; he feels like he failed Tony."

"How could he have protected him from a car accident?"

"He couldn't; but he feels like he should have. They worked together a long time."

"Almost four years. Hey, who was the third agent, before you?"

"Uh, Vivian Blackadder; but Gibbs fired her months before I met him. He and Tony worked as partners before she joined too."

McGee's eyes widened incredulously. "Tony worked with Gibbs alone?"

"Scary thought, isn't it. I can't imagine being Gibbs' partner; it must've been hell."

"Tony was always his favourite, though," McGee replied thoughtfully.

"What makes you say that? Gibbs was harder on him than any of us; mostly because he deserved it."

"Exactly. Gibbs was hard on Tony because he knew he could do better."

"DiNozzo was a good cop; and a good agent, if a little dumb."

"You really think Gibbs would've put up with a dumb cop for four years, Kate?"

"Tony had other talents. The two of us do the spadework and he makes obscure connections with movies. Although… sometimes, there was something about his eyes. Like he was watching himself to make sure he was acting normally."

"You noticed that too? It was mostly when there were kids involved in a case. I thought it was just because he didn't know how to act around them."

"Well, he was an only child. No siblings to practice on; and he didn't talk much about his family."

"There were no relatives at the service. I thought it was weird; but I didn't want to upset Abby any more by mentioning it."

"I know his mother's dead; but I think his father's still alive and he's got some cousins he mentions sometimes. It's strange; I thought I knew Tony, but I can't tell you much about him. I… should've tried harder; spent more time with him…" Kate's voice choked off.

"If you want, I could hack into his personnel file," suggested McGee, timidly.

"Isn't that illegal?"

"Well, um, technically, yes, very. But if it'd make you feel better…"

To his surprise, Kate got up from her desk and moved over to hug him. "Thanks, Tim," she said, sincerely. She tried to cover her eyes as she hurried away towards the ladies room to hide her tears.

McGee was left alone, staring at Tony's desk. If DiNozzo were here, he'd be smirking, leaning back on his chair. Tim could almost hear his voice.

"Nice work, Probie. When women are vulnerable, get right in there. I always knew she had a thing for me."

"Oh my God," said McGee to himself. "I'm turning into Tony."

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"Abby; Abby, my dear, Jethro is more than capable of taking care of himself," Ducky tried to comfort her desperately.

"No, Ducky, he is not!" She stated firmly. "Gibbs never, ever takes time off! And you saw him at the service; he was so… blank. It's like all the feeling got knocked out of him. If we don't find him I'm so scared that he might do something stupid and I can't lose him too, Ducky, I just can't. I'll never forgive myself if something happens to him…" tears began to trickle down her cheeks.

"Oh, Abigail…" Ducky wrapped his arms around her and let her cry into his shoulder.

"He should be here, Ducky," she managed. "We need him; I need him. And he needs us. I've never seen him like this…"

"Please, Abby; just stop panicking for a moment?"

"I am not panicking! Abigail Pauline Scutio does not panic! I just get real worried and overdose on caffeine!"

"Abby!" Ducky gripped her by the shoulders and spoke calmly but firmly to her. "Jethro is very upset; as are we all. He simply expresses his emotions differently to the rest of us. That is why he has gone away; he wants to be able to be strong for you when he returns. This is how he deals with things; you can't deny him the right to grieve in his own way, now, can you?"

"I guess not," she conceded. "But I need him here now." She sounded so childlike and vulnerable that Ducky had to pull her back into his arms.

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I pulled back from Gibbs a bit here; hope you still liked it.