Title: All This Time
Chapter: Chapter Two
Characters/Pairings: Tony/Ziva, McGee/Ziva
Spoilers/Warning: R
Summary: "He wants to scream at her until his voice is raw; to shake her and make her understand the depth of her betrayal..." - Tony/Ziva/McGee love triangle
Disclaimer: NCIS and all it's characters belong to CBS and Donald Bellsario.
Author's Note: Here's my excuse - I moved in with my boyfriend, got a personal trainer, and have been working mandatory O/T for the past month. I know, it's not good enough. Believe me when I say I'm going to try harder to find time to work on this. I promise. Oh, and I wanted to get this out quickly so I didn't really proof very well. It may be somewhat choppy in the middle and end.
Tony stands still, his forehead resting against the cool surface of the stopped elevator. In the past two years he's impersonated an Italian teamster, made friends with a former Russian KGB member, and assassinated the leader of a Syrian terrorist cell but even after all that, the thought of facing Ziva and McGee makes him want to vomit.
Although, the nausea could also be due to the copious amounts of Scotch he knocked back last night.
After a few deep, calming breaths, Tony straightens and pushes the emergency button. The elevator lurches back into life and a second later the doors ping open. There's a tubby man with a too-tight jacket standing just outside of the doors, scowling at him.
"I thought the emergency button would finally get a rest once Gibbs retired," he growls at Tony. "Apparently, I was wrong."
Tony frowns as he sidesteps the somewhat familiar man. He's pretty sure he should remember him but for the life of him he can't place the guy. Eh, Tony thinks, shaking his head. Right now he's got much more important things to think about than Fat Man in a Little Coat and, as he rounds the corner and catches sight of his new/old team, there they are.
Neither Ziva nor McGee has noticed his entrance yet and Tony uses this unguarded moment to assess the situation. McGee is sitting at Gibb's desk (for Tony will never willingly acknowledge McGee's control of the team) pecking away at his keyboard while Ziva stands behind him, her forearms resting on top of his shoulders as she peaks over his shoulder at whatever is on his screen. They're not at all self-conscious and it shows in the way their bodies are practically an extension of each other's.
When McGee turns and presses a soft kiss to Ziva's cheek, Tony has to look away.
"In or out, Dinozzo. Make up your mind."
Tony turns abruptly to find Vance standing behind him. "Sorry Sir. I was just-"
"Look, Tony," Vance says, eyeing him in that way that makes Tony feel like he's under a microscope, "I know this is going to be difficult for you, but I will drop you if your personal feelings affect your work or that of your team."
Tony opens and closes his mouth stupidly.
"What?" Vance scoffs. "You think I don't notice when my agents mix business with pleasure?"
Tony grimaces, extremely uncomfortable with this line of questioning.
"They've kept it professional," Vance warns, "and I expect you to as well."
Tony nods as the Director starts off toward his office. With a sigh, Tony turns back to the Bullpen to find that his conversation with Vance has obviously drawn the attention of his teammates (and the rest of the personnel, he realizes). Ziva is now sitting behind her desk, a look of false concentration on her face as she stares down at the paperwork in front of her intently. McGee still has his eyes on the computer in front of him, but now he's stiff and his back is ramrod straight. Tony can tell he's watching him out of the corner of his eye, calculating his next move.
Across from them, two unknown agents are openly staring at him. Tony raises an eyebrow lazily as he stares right back at them. The one at McGee's rightful desk is young, maybe in his mid-twenties, and looks down the second their eyes meet. The other, who is sitting at what was once Tony's desk, is a few years older than the other and seems to have no qualms about engaging in a staring match with a virtual stranger. He's obviously on Team McGee.
"You going to stand there all day, Tony, or come over to meet your new teammates?" McGee asks suddenly, his eyes never leaving his computer screen.
"Right," Tony chirps through clenched teeth. He tightens his hold on the backpack he's got slung over his good shoulder and steps into the Bullpen to greet the agents.
"Dan Hawkins," the young one at McGee's desk says. "Graduated from Purdue with a degree in Sociology and…"
Tony stops listening, opting to study the kid instead. He's obviously just graduated from college and is as green as they come. Maybe it's the good 'ol Midwest upbringing or the way his self-conscious smile reminds him of McGee on his first day, but Tony realizes he actually likes this kid.
When Dan finally stops reciting his credentials, Tony smiles and mutters a half-hearted, "Go Boilermakers."
"Boiler-up," Dan says excitedly as he sits back down with a grin.
Tony chuckles and turns to the agent currently standing behind the desk he called home for ten years. Even if the guy shit rainbows and burped butterflies (which he doesn't), Tony would still hate him because he's obviously his replacement.
"Seamus Walsh," the man says gruffly in a light Irish accent. He reminds Tony of a very serious, very sober Collin Farrell. "Been with NCIS for two years, MI5 for the twelve before."
"Tony Dinozzo," Tony supplies shortly and taps the surface of Walsh's desk with his fingertips. "This is my desk."
Walsh blinks. "This is my desk. It has been for the past two years."
"Yeah," Tony says, doing his best Bill Lumbergh. "See, I sat at this desk for ten years. And since I still have the key that opens the bottom drawer-"
"I jimmied that lock within the first week." Walsh's tone is bored and stony. "Quite the collection you had in there. I'm sure Agent David appreciated your keeping her bikini pictures away from prying eyes. Good for you."
Tony's eyes narrow sharply. He knew from the second he saw this guy that they wouldn't get along (alpha males rarely do) and now nothing would make him happier than breaking the Irishman's face.
"Don't worry," Walsh continues. "Boss has all your awards and medals."
"Gibbs?" Tony's face screws up in confusion.
"He means me," McGee says and Tony twirls around just as the other agent is pulling on his coat. McGee eyes his teammates, "Gear-up; dead marine. Tony, stay here and take care of the paperwork waiting for you on your desk."
When McGee points to the extra desk way back in the corner, Tony can't help but scowl. He's throwing his bag on the desk when Ziva catches his eye and gives him a small, encouraging smile. Tony's first instinct is to flash his charming pearly whites back at her, but he catches himself just in the nick of time and stares at her coolly instead. He looks away just in time to miss the way Ziva's face falls.
"Well," Tony says, staring down at the mountain of paperwork in front of him. The rest of his 'team' has already left and suddenly he feels very out of place. He really doesn't want to do paperwork; what could be more boring? So he instead nods to himself resolutely and says aloud, "Right. I'm going to see Abby."
He can hear loud, thumping music from the elevator and the familiarity of it causes him to finally relax as he steps into the lab. He grins as he steps into the lab and finds Abby dancing around, her head bobbing to the beat, as she pushes buttons and flicks switches on her 'babies'.
"Abby," Tony yells, making his presence known.
"Tony!" Abby squeals and grabs the remote to turn down the music volume. She hops over to him and throws her arms around his waist. Tony opens his mouth to greet her when she suddenly pulls away and pinches his bicep painfully.
"Abby!" Tony yelps. "What was that for?"
"I just wanted to be sure this isn't all a dream and you're actually dead," Abby says hurriedly and then reassumes her hug. "But you're real!"
"But," Tony stammers, still grimacing from her sudden attack, "aren't you supposed to pinch yourself?"
Abby pulls her cheek away from Tony's chest to look up at him. "And why would I want to do that?"
"Tradition, maybe?" Tony says with a chuckle. Leave it to Abby to put a smile on his face two seconds after causing him bodily harm.
"Screw tradition," Abby says as she pulls away. She waves at him to follow her as she winds her way further into the lab and stops at her computer. "So what brings you down here?"
"Just came to see you Abs," Tony says as he steps up next to her. She shoots him a pointed look and Tony quickly tries to change the subject. "So whatcha got here?"
"Partial print from a crime scene," Abby says with a shrug. "I'm just checking it against records."
They lapse into a comfortable silence as they watch the computer run through the fingerprint catalogues. The whirring of the machines help soothe Tony's nerves and he relaxes so much that he jumps when Abby says his name after a few silent minutes.
"So really – why are you down here?" Abby asks, her eyes sliding sideways to him and then back to the computer.
"They got a case," Tony tells her and nonchalantly adjusts his sling. "And McGoo left me a pile of paperwork a mile high. I'll tell you what, I did not miss the paperwork when I was on my op."
"Well," Abby asks slowly, ignoring the way Tony sneered when he said McGee's name, "what did you expect? You know what it's like for probies on their first day. It's all paperwork. Plus someone put a bullet through your shoulder so you might not be too helpful in the field."
"I can still take pictures or bag-and-tag," Tony snaps. "And I'm not a probie."
Abby bites her bottom lip and refrains from voicing her opinion.
"Speaking of probies," Tony says uncomfortably. "How is McGee at running the show?"
"Ah," Abby says, turning to look at him. "So there's the reason you came down here."
"I'm just curious," Tony tells her. "Two years ago the guy had to be told when to tie his shoes and now he's leading the top team in the agency?"
"That's not true and you know it," Abby says defensively. "Timmy has been a good agent from the beginning and when you left he had no problem sliding into the Senior Field Agent vacancy you left. Even Gibbs was impressed."
Tony frowns. "So what's the deal with Walsh?"
"He's…" Abby pauses to contemplate Walsh. "Serious. Very serious."
"Yeah, I figured that out pretty quickly," Tony scoffs. "Well, I guess I should start trying to put a dent into some of that paperwork. See you later?"
Abby nods and, as Tony turns to leave, says softly, "They've been through a lot to get where they are."
"Abs," Tony whispers, eyes closing sadly.
"Just…" Abby sighs. "Keep that in mind, ok?"
Hours later, the office is all but deserted and Tony's got a cramp in his writing hand from signing his signature eighty-million times already (he's got another twenty-million to go). He's finally reaching the end of his second stack of paperwork when the elevator suddenly chimes and his team steps back into the bullpen. He watches them from his dark little corner as they dump their packs onto their respective desks.
"Hawkins, Walsh," McGee says tiredly. His two agents glance up at him as they're settling into their chairs. "Why don't you two head home and grab some Z's?"
Hawkins doesn't have to be told twice and, before McGee can even bark out an order to be back by seven the following morning, he's scooped up his bag and is heading out the door without so much as a glance backwards. Walsh, on the other hand, glances at Tony and then back at McGee before asking, "You sure boss? I can run through some of these reports tonight if you'd like."
Tony gets the distinct feeling that Walsh is either a total loser without a life outside work or he's so tuned-in with the tension radiating from his colleagues that he feels uncomfortable leaving them unsupervised for any amount of time. Or it could be a combination of the two.
"That's not necessary," McGee says with a small smile. "Our suspect isn't going anywhere anytime soon. I think it can wait until the morning."
"Well then," Walsh says, eyes flickering to Tony for just a second. "Have a good night." He leaves then and Tony watches McGee slump into his chair as Ziva pulls out her cell phone to check her messages.
"So," Tony asks suddenly, "what's the case?"
"A young couple was found murdered in an apartment," McGee says, surprised that Tony has even spoken to him. "They've been there a couple of days."
"And?"
"The ex-boyfriend, a marine, was picked up a few of hours after Palmer's estimated T.O.D. by the locals." McGee shrugs. "Looks pretty cut and dry."
"Such a waste," Tony says with a nod. "Though I know how the guy probably feels."
The words have the exact affect they were supposed to. Ziva snaps her phone shut without finishing her messages and McGee suddenly looks extremely wary; as if Tony's a rabid animal ready to attack.
"I mean, you love a girl with all your heart and she turns her back on you," Tony says casually. "His heart was broken."
"Tony-"
"Let me guess, he just got back from a tour?" Tony raises an eyebrow. "Right?"
Ziva nods. "Yes. He got back from Iraq two weeks ago and found out she had been cheating on him with one of his friends."
"He probably thought she was being a good little Susie Homemaker in his absence too," Tony says and stands up. His anger has been slowly simmering since the night before and now that he's finding himself sympathizing with a murderer it has suddenly hit its boiling point.
"That's not fair," Ziva says quietly as her eyes flitter to the floor.
"You don't think so?"
"No," Ziva shakes her head. "I don't."
"What do you think is fair then?" Tony asks, his tone lowering dangerously as he steps around his desk. "You think it was fair for her to start sleeping with his best friend while he was off fighting for his country? For his life?"
"I know what you are getting at," Ziva tells him. "But our situation is nothing like theirs."
"Oh, I beg to differ," Tony chuckles mirthlessly. "I think our situation is very similar. I bet she was his first thought every morning and the last before he fell asleep. I bet that when times got tough the only thing that kept him from giving up was the thought of her, too. And then, when he finally gets to come home to her, he finds out she's been seeing his best friend behind his back."
"That's not fair!" Ziva cries and there are suddenly tears in her eyes. "We thought you were dead."
"Fine. Fine, you thought I was dead." Tony's jaw sets as his eyes bore into Ziva's. "So how long, Ziva?"
Ziva's eyebrows knit in confusion. "I don't-"
"How long was I 'dead' before you jumped in bed with McGee?" Tony hisses. "How long was I dead before you fucked my best friend?"
"That's enough Ton-"
"You shut up," Tony bellows as he pivots around and stabs his finger at McGee. "You shut the hell up. You are never to speak to me again. Ever."
"You need to settle down," McGee suggests calmly. He slides out of his chair and rounds his desk slowly, deliberately. "We all need to settle down and discuss this like adults."
"What's there to discuss?" Tony scoffs, a hysterical edge to his voice. "I 'die' and the two of you jump into bed ten minutes later?"
"That's not how it happened," Ziva whispers roughly.
Tony turns back to her and swallows heavily. He wants to scream at her until his voice is raw; to shake her and make her understand the depth of her betrayal. But when his eyes fall upon her he realizes that nothing he can say or do could ever make her fall any more than she already has. So instead of unleashing a string of obscenities and insults like he wants to so badly, he takes a few calming breaths and asks harshly, "Then how did it?"
Ziva's eyes slide sideways to McGee. He's been steadily inching his way to her and when they're finally standing shoulder to shoulder he wraps his index finger around her own and gives it a reassuring squeeze. Tony doesn't miss the look that passes between them or the way Tim gives her a tiny, encouraging nod. Just his mere presence is comforting to her and Tony has to bite his lip from lashing out. He used to be the one to comfort Ziva and it's killing him that his position in her life has been replaced by his best friend.
"When you…" Ziva shakes her head, not able to say the words, and looks up at McGee for help.
"When you died," McGee says quietly, uncertainly, as his gaze slides from Ziva to Tony, "everything fell apart. A few weeks after Gibbs handed in his resignation Ducky had his stroke. Ziva and I were suddenly thrust into the Team Leader and Senior Agent vacancies. We were pulled in a hundred different directions all at once. And it was so stressful and chaotic and we had no one else to turn to. And then…" McGee's eyes screw shut at the painful memory. "And then Ziva lost the baby."
Tony's eyes dart from one to the other, shocked and outraged. "You knocked her up?"
"No." McGee opens his eyes and stares straight into Tony's eyes. "You did."