Chapter 3: Make-Over

Disclaimer: Only my stuff is mine.

A/N: Sorry for the long wait! This is a really short chapter too, sorry. Not much action, but a little McGee/Abby. I think. LOL.

ENJOY!!!

Abby's eyes were squeezed shut and her face was screwed up in apparent agony. She cried out; her wail echoing off the walls surrounding her. Her head jerked back as one of the people behind her yanked on her hair so hard it jarred her teeth. "Stop! Stop, please!" she begged, her voice cracking from calling out so many times. "Just stop!" she screamed.

The hands tangled in her hair abruptly released her. Not expecting this, Abby's head swung forward and her chin slammed to her chest. "Thank you."

The person behind her gave a heavy 'why me?' sigh. "Abigail…" the tone was warning. "You promised—,"

"No." Abby cut across the federal beautician. Abby may have fit the three most general descriptions of Watson's type, but Ziva soon divulged that his type was a little more clean-cut than Abby. This meant no gelled, braided, or pig-tailed hair. The Director had called in a favor with a woman she had attended college with who just happened to be a beautician who worked for the government. "I agreed to let you "tame" my hair, not rip it out! And it's Abby, not Abigail!"

"I'm not ripping it out!" the woman exclaimed in frustration. She opened her mouth to yell some more, but stopped short, visibly trying to calm herself down. Abby could almost hear the woman mentally counting to ten. When she spoke again, her voice was quiet, as thought she were struggling not to yell. "Abby," she stressed the pronunciation of the scientist's name. "I'm almost finished. Please, please," A hint of desperation had crept into her voice. "Just let me do what I was hired to do."

Abby folded her arms over her chest and slumped down a little, pout firmly in place on her lips. "Do I have to, Gibbs?" Abby, who had her back to the door, should have had no way of telling if someone had entered the room. But she knew Gibbs.

And she knew that Gibbs was currently leaning against the doorframe watching the beauty torture play out. She felt the federal sadist, who had introduced herself as Sally, whip around and stutter out a greeting. "A-a-agent Gibbs!" She paused, her voice sounding rather squeaky. "I, um, didn't see you…there." She finished lamely.

"Mm-hm." Gibbs replied, cocky half-smile in place. He pushed himself off of the doorframe and moved into Abby's direct line of sight. "No, Abs," He paused, narrowing his eyes concernedly. "You don't have to."

Abby sighed looking at Gibbs. "Yes, I do." She shook her head and pouted even more. She slid even further down in her chair and grumbled to herself.

"What was that?" Gibbs asked, amused.

"Nothing." Abby pasted a huge, fake smile on her face. "Just how excited I am!"

Gibbs smiled and shook his head. "Don't be too hard on her." He called over his shoulder as he strode back towards the door.

"I'm not, Agent Gibbs. I'm just doing what Jen asked m--," the beautician was cut off as Gibbs turned around.

"I was talking to Abby." Gibbs cocked his head and flashed Sally a 'I'm-trying-really-hard-not-to-enjoy-making-you-feel-like-an-idiot-but-it's-too-much-fun' smile.

When Gibbs had left the room, Sally turned around, a deep purple color. She met Abby's eyes, looking for some kind of sympathy or reassurance. Unfortunately for her, she would be receiving non from the woman sitting in front of her. Abby bounced a little and smiled brightly.

"Let's just get this over with." Sally grumbled, forcing Abby to turn around so that the back of her head was facing the door again. Sally began pulling the 'de-tangler' slathered comb through the scientist's dark hair.

……………………………………………………………………………………………..

"You've got to be kidding me." Abby stared blankly at her reflection. Her mouth was hanging open and her hands were hanging limply at her sides.

"Oh, come on, Abs!" Tony said jovially, throwing an arm over her shoulder and following her eyes to look at her reflection. "I think you look quite smashing." He raised a cocky eyebrow and spoke with his "Sean Connery" accent.

"Shut up." Abby whined, distressed. "Tony, I look like a Barbie doll!"

Tony squeezed her shoulders once before stepping back. "No, you don't, Abby."

"I would trust him if I were you, Abby." Ziva said as she and McGee walked into Abby's lab. "He had dated enough 'Barbie dolls.'" Ziva pronounced the last two words with distaste.

"Haha." Tony scrunched his nose at her.

McGee started to laugh before he really got a good look at Abby. When he did…boy…did all words escape him. "Guh…" he said, rather intelligently.

"See?" Abby turned to Tony and Ziva in misery. "McGee thinks I look 'guh!'"

Tony and Ziva shared an amused look before looking back at the harried woman and dumbstruck man. "Yeah, Abs…" Tony paused, looking skyward to find the right words. "I don't think he meant "guh" as a bad thing."

"Yes, I think McGee was rather at a loss for words." Ziva added, grinning when McGee finally tore his eyes from Abby and giving the Mossad officer a withering look.

Abby whirled on McGee, arms crossed over her leather-clad chest. Narrowing her eyes at him calculatingly, she cocked her head. "Well?" After a moment she spread her arms and waited, so McGee could get the full effect of the outfit.

Abby was wearing dark wash boot-cut jeans, a thin white tank-top that looked impossibly soft, a thin black leather belt, and the coolest black leather motorcycle jacket he had ever seen. On her feet, she wore three or four inch black patent high heels, giving the outfit a dangerous/sexy sort of feel. Her fingernails and toes were painted a deep red and her hair was falling in soft waves to her shoulder blades. Her bangs, which she had allowed to grow out recently, were pushed subtly to one side.

Her eyes were rimmed in a soft grey color that brought out the natural green of her irises and her mouth was a subtly shiny mauve color.

Whoa.

"You…I—I mean…um, wow." McGee felt his face heating up as he lacked the ability to string a few words together to make an intelligible sentence.

Abby waited for a minute, mentally sifting through McGee's garbled compliment. Which is eventually what she deemed it.

A compliment, that is.

"Aw, thanks, Tim." Abby ran/stumbled over to him and threw her arms around his neck. McGee returned the hug enthusiastically.

Which both Tony and Ziva noticed.

And promptly rolled their eyes at.

"Abby." Gibbs stuck his head in the lab. "It's go time."

The team and Abby all looked at each other for a moment, letting out a deep breath in synchrony. "Alright." Abby said, bolstering as much confidence as she could. "Let's go."