Chapter: 6: Accountability
Setting: during season eight, episode tag 'Dead Air', AU after that
Summary: What if when Ziva and McGee had turned off the radio, Tony had ended up in a deadly situation and needed their help? Will his teammates realize something is wrong in time to save both their partner and the victim? And what happens when the real reason why Tony didn't have any back-up is revealed? Will Team Gibbs survive the truth? Or will it be the end of them?
Chapter Word Count: 5,621
A/N: First off; thank you to everyone for their well wishes and prayers. You guys are the best! Reading just one of those reviews really brought my spirits up and I'm so glad and grateful for you guys. Second; the reason why the chapter took so long was because after I found out about my grandmother's death and then going through the funeral, I wasn't really in a writing mood. And when I finally restarted writing, I don't think my mind was fully cleared, so if anything seems repetitive or jumpy or irrelevant, then that's why and I am so sorry
A/N 2: I know that Lara Macy was the director of NCIS: LA during this episode of the NCIS, but for the story's sake, Henrietta "Hetty" Lange has been the director of the NCIS: LA office from the start. And since in canon, NCIS: LA premiered in 2009, but this NCIS episode was around 2008, let's just say that for this story, NCIS: LA started before its actual canon start.
Reviewers for last chapter (5):
One More Disaster; prince-bishop; psyche53 (guest); Rainbow2007; gotgoats; Tonygurl (guest); Luvliacd; shep's1girl; Laura Ann (guest); MelodyPotterSnape; S (guest); PhoebeTheQueenOfDragons; Midnightstarlight23; chemmom4; keembur; gypsydancer529; angelscatie; Gloworm41; PhoenixWytch; angeleyes46; muse (guest); tansysam; Guest; Megth; lizrat66; coco6-3-9-1; Magpie1600; pearl64ful; newgal; DS2010; chinapps22; karlii; claire19874; Jebeth; FireAngel5683
Psyche53 (guest): oh thank you! I'm glad to hear that. I was a little worried about the dialogue between Gibbs and Tony, but I'm glad it was ok.
Tonygurl (guest): first, I am glad you loved the chapter, especially the Gibbs and Tony scene. Now, as for Vitalia; I know it was too easy. I purposely did it like that. Don't worry, it will all be sorted out.
Laura Ann (guest): I'm glad you loved it and as for those two; yes, the confrontation can go a number of ways. I already have it planned out in my head, but I can't say without giving away the story *laughs*
These are two reviews I got:
Beth (guest): The owners of NCIS are NOT OK with slash fan fiction. Fan fiction is bad
enough. You could be repectful of the owners request that you don't mess with
the sexual orientation of THEIR characters. If you can't respect that then
just know that you are loathed and hated thought very badly of by those you
aparantly admire so much that you write fan fiction with THEIR characters. I
suppose you don't give a toss. I would like to see you not go down the slash
road. Invent your own gay characters if you like... Tony and Gibbs are now Gay
so don't be so damn disrespectful. Go down the slash road I ...and the many
many many others who don't cross that line out of respect for the request that
came from CBS and Bellasarius. We will not be reading ANY of your stories. So
there... and don't bother replying because I wont be back on your page. Don't
care what you think but I imagine you'll be all self rightous and
defensive...But you are wrong.. and you are also breaking the law... and being
a jerk. so there
Jonte (guest): I really agree that changing the sexual orientations of the characters is really offensive to the creator and more people would enjoy the fanfiction if you would just not do that. Like you could care less…cause really this is all self-indulgence as fanfiction is totally self-indulgence at the expense of those who actually wrote and own these characters. And like, you never make a spelling mistake…you need to get over yourself.
My reply: I am not going to apologize for my story. When I changed it to slash, I gave warning and the story has almost 300 reviewers, which means there are other people out there that actually love the story and don't mind continuing, so losing one or two doesn't break the story. And also, could you please tell me where it says word for word that the creators of NCIS do not want any fiction stories created around their characters. We state in the disclaimer that we don't anything familiar, only the plotline, so why are you getting on my case? Do you go around to every slash story on this site and tell the same thing to those authors? I don't need to get over myself. I never forced anyone to read my story and I said if anyone had a problem, to please stop reading.
There will always be people like this that have a problem with slash and authors who write slash and if you want to read my story, knowing it's slash and then criticise me, then that's your deal. I don't get you people; when I find a story, and as I'm reading the first chapter I don't like what I'm reading, I stop! I don't continue on to read like four chapters and then review to the author telling them they're offensive for writing what they did, especially if they had warnings at the beginning of the chapter.
From this moment on, I will ignore any and all reviews that tell me I shouldn't write slash and how it's offensive to change the sexual orientation of someone else's characters.
Now…to all my faithful reviewers, thank you guys for continuing to read and for sticking by this story and me and for loving it. Now…on with the chapter!
Disclaimer: NCIS and all its affiliates belong to its creators Donald P. Bellisario and Don McGill, and CBS Television. No trademark or copyright infringement is intended and no money is being made from this. In other words, I DO NOT own.
"Speaking"
'Thinking'
"Speaking over the phone"
Original Posting Date: Friday 30th November, '12.
It is not only what we do, but what we do not do for which we are accountable—Molière
Ziva sat in her car as she watched the NCIS building; she hadn't been back since the Director had ordered her and McGee off the premises almost three weeks ago. The last two weeks had been spent at the NCIS training academy; Vance had ordered both her and McGee to report there, stating that they needed to learn how to work as a team and what it meant to have your teammates' back.
They had had to sit through seminars on working together, retake their firearms evaluations, have psychological evaluations, and what had made everything worse was that everyone at the training centre knew what they had done, what she had done and the two of them had been treated with contempt. No one wanted to be near them and that had hurt.
And the worst thing was, she had no idea how Tony was doing. She didn't know if he had woken up or if he was still in the coma. A week after Tony had been admitted, she had tried, against Gibbs' orders, to go to the hospital, hoping to see him without the others being there, but had found she couldn't. She hadn't even been able to get past the nurses' desk. The moment she had told them who she was, they had told her that she wasn't allowed to see him due to a request made by Gibbs.
That had stung. Dejected, she had turned and left and hadn't tried to go back again. And even now, almost two weeks she had first tried, she still didn't know anything.
A car honking brought her out of her thoughts with a jump and she looked up to see that it was just a car in the parking lot across from the building.
Sighing, she got out and headed inside. She got on the elevator, ignoring the dark looks from the agents, and guards in the lobby, and pressed the number to the bullpen. Her hands clenched and unclenched the entire time as she knew her presence would not be welcomed.
When the doors open, she kept her head bowed as she stepped off the elevator into the bullpen.
She could hear the whispers start up as everyone saw her and she felt their stares but she ignored them.
"What is she doing here?"
"Oh didn't you hear? She has that interview with IA today. She was to explain why she left her partner without back-up and why he's in the hospital and a woman is dead because of it."
"Do you think she'll get her job back?"
Ziva didn't hear the response as she had turned down the hallway to the interrogation room where her interview would be. When she got there, she saw that IA was already waiting for her.
"Ms. David," one of the men said, "My name is Tony Rogers and this is Steve Williams."
"Gentlemen," Ziva nodded as she took the seat they offered.
"Now," Rogers spoke, "you know why you're here. We need to understand exactly what happened on the day in question."
"Explain to us exactly what you, Agent DiNozzo and Agent McGee were doing that day," Williams said.
Ziva shifted in her seat, "We were canvassing a neighbourhood, trying to find a voice print match to find the terrorist from the radio. Agent DiNozzo had chosen to be the one to go door to door, while I and Agent McGee remained in the car."
Rogers looked up from his notes, "What happened at that point?"
At the question, Ziva found she couldn't hold the man's gaze as the memories of that day flew across her mind.
"Ms. David?" Rogers prompted, his gaze impassive.
"Agent DiNozzo was going door to door in an effort to match a voice to the recording that we had had at the time," Ziva refocused and explained, "During his reconnaissance, he kept up a running commentary about trivial things and Agent McGee and myself soon became irritated and then we," she stopped.
"You what?" Williams said, impatience colouring his voice, "You did what Ms. David?"
"We turned the radio off," Ziva finished.
"Why?" Williams asked. He had to fight to keep his professionalism. He had already known what she had done, but to hear it again, it still sent anger rolling through him. Such a blatant disregard for not only their partner's safety, but for the agency's rules as well.
"We were tired of hearing him speak," Ziva told them, shame filling her.
Rogers looked at her, "So, let me see if I get this straight; while you and your partners were on a mission to find a terrorist, you decided to cut all communications because you were tired of hearing him talk?"
Yes," Ziva nodded.
The temperature in the room dropped. Rogers and Williams exchanged looks before giving Ziva a harsh stare.
"Whose idea was it to turn off the radio?" Williams asked.
"I turned it off," Ziva admitted.
"Did Agent McGee do anything when he saw that you had turned off the radio?" Rogers asked.
"He leaned his head back against the headrest and said 'Thank God'," Ziva said.
"How long was the radio off for?" Rogers asked.
"I do not know," Ziva shook her head, "I suspect around three hours."
Rogers and Williams exchanged another look, but neither commented on her statement.
"Then what happened?" Williams asked.
"We became curious as to why Agent DiNozzo was taking so long to return and I suggested we turn the radio back on, but Agent McGee asked if I wanted to subject myself to more of Agent DiNozzo's rambling, considering we had enough of it at the office. I said no, and remarked that it had been peaceful, and so, the radio remained off.
"After a while, we became even more concerned when Agent DiNozzo did not return. We turned the radio back on and tried contacting Agent DiNozzo, but we received no answer."
Ziva paused as it hit her that about that time, Tony had not even been conscious. She swallowed heavily and continued, "We then decided to go after him. Just as we were about to leave, we noticed our boss-Agent Gibbs' car drive by us and we realized something was wrong, so we followed him. When we came upon the house, we found Agent Gibbs kneeling next to Agent DiNozzo who was unconscious.
"Agent Gibbs ordered us to secure the scene and transfer the suspect back to base and he took Agent DiNozzo to the hospital. Agent McGee and I did as we were told. When the LEOs arrived, we explained what we knew, allowed their own M.E. to take the body of the victim and we brought Morrison back here to NCIS per Agent Gibbs' orders."
The two IA agents stared at Ziva for a few minutes before turning slightly to face each other and spoke in low tones, too low for Ziva to pick up.
As the two agents continued to talk, Ziva felt herself becoming agitated. She shifted slightly in her seat, trying to curb the restlessness and anxiousness that moved through her.
After what seemed like hours to Ziva, both men turned back to her. The look on their faces had dread running through her.
"Ms. David," Williams spoke up, his voice cold, "your actions were not only unethical, but they went against everything this agency has taught you. You deliberately chose to close all communications to you partner, knowing that he was searching for a terrorist, and not once, did you stop and think, 'Am I doing the right thing? This was not what I was taught'. And the result, a woman is dead, a child is orphaned and an agent is lying in a hospital bed."
Ziva tried to keep her stare up, she really did, it's what she was taught after all, to never show fear or weakness, but this, this was her family and she had betrayed them and that was something she couldn't face. So, she dropped her eyes to the table.
"Do you even think about the consequences of your actions?" Rogers demanded, "People's lives ended up in jeopardy because of you!"
Ziva flinched at the man's words. She could feel the hurt and sorrow, but her training kicked in and she pushed it away. Yes, she made a mistake and she regretted it, but yelling at her wasn't going to change anything. "I do understand my actions and the result of said actions. I am…very sorry about what happened, but it was a mistake."
"A mistake?" Williams cut her off, "What you did was not a mistake. You were searching for a terrorist and when your partner was doing his job, you decided to sever all communications, a decision that you admitted doing because you were tired of hearing him talk. That was not a mistake. It was deliberately done. Do you even like your partner? Do you even care about him?"
"Of course I do!" Ziva snapped out, anger filling her. "I care about Tony and I never wanted him to get hurt!"
"Well you have a funny way of showing you care," Rogers glared at her. He glanced down at the folder in front of him, "I have reports from other agents and from I gather, this is not the first time Agent DiNozzo had to suffer because of you."
Ziva shot out of her seat, "I have never placed Tony's life in jeopardy and how dare you insinuate otherwise?!"
"Sit down Ms. David!" Williams growled out, "NOW!"
Ziva was breathing heavily because of her anger and it was with reluctance that she did as she was told.
"He never said the suffering was physical, now did he?" Rogers stared at her, "according to reports, when Agent Gibbs was on leave, Agent DiNozzo became the leader, which given the fact that he was the Senior Field Agent and he was an NCIS agent longer than both you and Mr. McGee and as such had more experience, it was the right choice. However, neither of one of you saw it that way." He looked down at the folder, "According to other agents, both of you displayed a disturbing lack of respect for Agent DiNozzo; incomplete case reports, ignoring orders, questioning the lead agent when orders were given." He looked up at Ziva, "Do you need me to continue?"
Ziva had averted her eyes as the memories of Gibbs' hiatus became prominent in her mind. At the time, she had felt so justified in her actions, but listening to them now…"No, I do not need you to continue."
"I thought as much," Rogers tried to hold on to his sneer.
"If it was up to us," Williams stated, "you would be fired immediately."
Ziva's eyes immediately flashed towards him and when she spoke, the hope could be heard in her voice, "I still have my job?"
Williams and Rogers exchanged looks.
"I wouldn't sound too hopeful Ms. David," Rogers scoffed, "You have a disciplinary hearing in two days' time where your future at NCIS will be decided by SECNAV. Until then, you are not to set foot on NCIS property."
"You may leave," Williams said, "And on your way out, send in Mr. McGee."
Ziva stood up, with hope in her heart. If she could just explain everything to SECNAV, she could save her job.
When she left the room, she saw McGee leaning against the wall opposite the door.
"Hey Ziva," McGee nodded towards her, "How'd it go?"
"Not very well," Ziva admitted, "however, I am optimistic and will remain so until I can no longer be."
McGee looked confused for a split second before he shook his head. "Glad to hear that Ziva."
Ziva nodded, "you can go in." as he passed her, she reached out and grabbed his arm, "Be strong McGee and have hope."
McGee had no idea how he was supposed to have hope when all he felt was despair, but he didn't say anything. He just touched her hand and then continued to the room.
"Shut the door Mr. McGee," Williams said the moment he stepped inside, "and sit down."
McGee gulped before doing as he was told.
"You know why you're here," Rogers said, getting straight to the point. Talking to Ziva had him on edge and he was torn between immediately yelling at the man in front of him and actually listening to hear his side of the story.
"Yes," McGee nodded, trying not to show the fear he was feeling.
"Would you care to explain your version of events?" Williams asked.
"When myself and Agents DiNozzo and David got to the neighbourhood," McGee told them, "Agent DiNozzo offered to be the one that went door to door to get the voice match. As he did so, he started talking and after a while…"
McGee explained everything, his version matching up with Ziva's. When he was done, he gulped a few times and started to fidget. Not once during his explanation, did either IA agent interrupt him. It made him nervous.
"Mr. McGee, I'm going to be honest," Rogers spoke up, "What you and Ms. David did was nothing short of disgusting. Your partner trusted you to be his back-up, to be on the look-out for him and the both of you left him hanging. Because of your wilful act, Agent DiNozzo suffered, a child was hurt and a woman lost her life. At the very least, you both deserve to serve time in jail for your actions."
McGee blanched at the agent's words and he paled immediately. Even though he knew he would have to face some kind of consequence for what he had done, he hadn't expected this. All he had thought was that he would get suspended, or God forbid fired, but not this; not the possibility of going to jail.
"I'm sorry," McGee stammered out, "I didn't mean for anything to happen. It was just-we were just so tired of him talking. We didn't know that that would have happened. We were wrong-I was wrong. I know we shouldn't have done that, but I don't think we deserve to go to jail for it. It was an honest mistake."
"That was the same thing that Ms. David said," Williams said, "she said it was just a mistake; one anyone could've made. What neither of you understand is that you are Naval officers and as such, you can't be making mistakes like that. They cost lives. Your actions call for your termination here and now."
McGee shifted in his seat at the reprimand. The words sliced through him, bringing back the guilt that had never really left. Even now, almost three weeks later, he still couldn't believe he had done what he did.
He had gone against his own morals, not to mention Gibbs' own. His job was in jeopardy and the worst of it was, he had damaged his friendships with everyone, especially Tony and any thought he had had of having a relationship with Abby was gone.
He had messed up really bad and he knew the others wouldn't be in any mood to forgive him any time soon. He should've known better. It was Tony after all. Abby and Ducky and Gibbs knew Tony longer than they did and were closer to him; Gibbs especially. While he knew how close Gibbs and Abby were, he knew that somehow, Tony was still closer to their boss than anyone else…including Ducky.
"Mr. McGee!" Rogers called sharply, noticing the man's distracted gaze.
McGee jumped, "What?"
"Is this not worth your attention Mr. McGee?" Williams stared at him with narrowed eyes. "Are you so unconcerned about the consequences of your actions that you think you can just ignore everything?"
"N-no s-sir," McGee stammered out, "Of course this is worth my attention and I am not unconcerned."
"Mr. McGee," Rogers said, "do you have anything to say in your defence? Other than the fact that it was a mistake that shouldn't have happened and you thought it would be just a routine day?"
McGee opened his mouth to answer, but closed it as the words sank in. The truth is he didn't have anything else to say. Nothing he said now could erase what happened; he had left Tony on his own when he knew they were supposed to be doing their jobs and that meant keeping the communications lines open.
Williams and Rogers exchanged looks at the silence. They never expected him to basically submit so quickly. David had argued her actions, but not him.
"No arguments?" Williams taunted.
"What else can I say?" McGee looked up at the two men, "We messed up. We never should've done what we did."
"You're right," Rogers nodded, "you did mess up; the both of you and you both have to suffer the consequences for your actions. Because of what you did, your partner ended up in serious trouble, needing help and no way to get it. I know, you might think we're repeating ourselves but it seems to be the only way to get through to you."
McGee nodded and swallowed with some difficulty, "do we still have our jobs?"
Williams shook his head, "I'm going to tell you the same thing we told Ms. David; it is not up to us. If it was, both of you would be fired right now, no more questions or anything. But you both still have to have your disciplinary hearing and who knows who that may go. You can hope for the best, but I seriously doubt it'll go the way you want it."
"Until then though," Rogers continued, "you're still not allowed in the building or anywhere near."
McGee nodded, "I understand. If that's all…"
"You can leave," Williams nodded towards the door.
McGee stood up and walked away without a backward glance. When he was outside, he stopped and leaned against the wall, taking deep breaths. That had been harder, and yet easier somehow, than he had thought it would be.
Now all that's left was the hearing.
~…~
Three days later, McGee and Ziva found themselves standing in MTAC with Vance sitting in front of them. Upon the screen, they could see four other people; they recognized the director of the NCIS LA office and the SECNAV, but the other two, they didn't know them.
"Sit down," Vance ordered sharply.
McGee and Ziva shared a look before doing as they were told.
Vance stared at the two before gesturing to the screens, "These are Henrietta Lange, Director of the LA office, Clayton Jarvis, Secretary of the Navy, General of the Navy, Admiral Albert Chegwidden and Assistant Director of the Department of Homeland Security, Thomas Morrow."
McGee gulped. Each of the four was staring at he and Ziva and he felt exposed. He couldn't read anything on their faces and it had his heart racing as he knew his future was about to be decided once and for all.
Ziva stared at the faces in front of her and she tried not to let her fear or apprehension show. She knew what this meeting meant; after today, she would know if she was still and NCIS agent and in what capacity.
Vance turned back to Ziva and McGee, "the both of you are here before these men and woman to discuss your actions three weeks ago and the consequences of said actions. Consequences not limited to job termination or prison time."
McGee and Ziva's heart-rate spiked at the words. They had known that losing their jobs was a possibility, but hearing it out loud, as well as the fact that they could go to prison, left them feeling chilled.
Vance opened the folders in his hands. "I have in my hand the reports from both of you regarding the day in question as well as the reports concluded from the IA investigation, and reports from Agents Gibbs and DiNozzo, Forensic Scientist Abigail Sciuto and other agents as well."
McGee and Ziva, while they were not surprised to hear that there reports from Gibbs and Abby and others, they were surprised to hear there was one from Tony.
They both took that to mean Tony was ok and both felt some weight ease off of them.
The SECNAV spoke up, "We've all read the reports, but frankly, I am still in a state of disbelief over the contents of the folder in front of me. The reason for the disbelief is because I cannot understand the fact that while the two of you, along with Agent DiNozzo, were on an assignment, an assignment that could've—and did—turn deadly at any moment, the both of you decided it was perfectly fine to cut all communications between you and him?"
"Yes," McGee and Ziva nodded as one.
"Are you both out of your minds?" Morrow demanded. Before he had gotten the promotion to Homeland Security, he had been the Director, so he had been there when Tony had first started at NCIS.
He had been intrigued when they had first met because he had wanted to know who the person was that Gibbs, the most hard-ass, stubborn bastard working at NCIS since Mike Franks, had chosen to work with him—not only chosen but had practically demanded the young man work with him and leave Baltimore PD. That intrigue had soon become captivation after watching the two of them work side by side.
During his time at NCIS, he had learned that Tony DiNozzo had become well-liked by pretty much everyone he met; not only was he a charmer and charismatic, but he was very devoted and loyal and was willing to do anything for a friend, no matter what—unless it went against Gibbs, then all bets were off.
The point is, Tony was the kind of person you know that once you became a friend to him, he would stand by you and defend you. He was the last person that deserved to be treated like this. So to hear what these two had done…it angered him.
"What in God's name possessed you to do what you did?" Morrow continued, glaring at the two.
"I would like to know the answer to that myself," Admiral Chegwidden said.
"As would I," Hetty nodded in agreement, "such blatant misconduct and disregard for protocol; your reasoning better be good."
McGee swallowed. He hadn't known what to expect when he came in here, but this wasn't it. He had thought it was just the Director and maybe SECNAV, not everyone here and this was making things very hard; harder than he had thought they would be. Now, he had to explain his actions all over again to all of them and hope to convince them that he really was sorry and that they didn't deserve to go to prison or lose their jobs.
"To be honest," McGee started, "There is nothing I could say that could excuse what I did. We were supposed to be doing our jobs and that included keeping the communication lines open."
"According to this," Admiral Chegwidden said, "you did that because you were tired of listening to him talk. Could you explain that to me please?"
"Tony talks…a lot," McGee explained, "it doesn't matter if we're out in the field or in the bullpen doing paperwork. He's always talking and it's almost always about movies or some other trivial stuff. When he started his running commentary, we couldn't take it. We'd had enough of it at the office and we didn't want to suffer through it at that time. So, we turned the radio off. We just wanted peace and quiet. I know, we never should've turned it off, but—
"But nothing," Hetty interrupted, "you said it yourself Mr. McGee; there is nothing you can say now that can excuse what you did. Your partner was counting on you to be his back-up and instead, you deliberately chose to break protocol and all because you wanted peace and quiet?"
McGee ducked his head as shame and guilt rolled through him. Despite the fact that it was almost three weeks ago, and that Tony was ok, he couldn't help it. It was his fault. He should've known better.
"And you Ms. David," Morrow looked at Ziva, "Do you have anything to say?"
"What we did," Ziva started, "it was a mistake. One, I know, we should not have made. Tony was counting on us and we were doing our jobs. We messed up."
"You didn't just mess up Ms. David," SECNAV interrupted harshly, "a woman lost her life, a child was caught in the crossfire and an agent ended up in the hospital fighting for his life. That was not a simple mess up. Everything that happened that day could've been avoided if the both of you had done what you had been paid to do."
Hetty picked up, "You showed disrespect to not only Agent DiNozzo, but to this agency as a whole."
"Do you even like Agent DiNozzo? Was his well-being not important in the grand scheme of things that you thought you could leave him without back-up and then try and justify why you did so?" Morrow asked.
"We do care about Tony!" Ziva bristled, "How can you imply that we do not? Tony is our friend and hurting him was not something we wanted."
"I find that very unbelievable," Admiral Chegwidden said, "this is not the first time either of you have shown insubordination towards Agent DiNozzo."
Both Ziva and McGee frowned at the man's words.
"We've never shown insubordination to Tony," McGee answered.
"You want to take that statement back?" Admiral Chegwidden raised an eyebrow at the two before he looked down at the folder on his desk and flipped through it, "Do you recall when Agent Gibbs was on medical leave for close to five months?"
Ziva and McGee exchanged looks, both wondering where the man was going with the question.
"Answer him!" Morrow snapped out.
Both jumped, but they weren't the only ones; Vance jumped as well. The man had remained quiet as he listened to the three interrogate McGee and David. He had wanted to add his own input, but right now, he felt that the three of them were doing a pretty good job on their own. He would wait until the end before giving the decision he had already made.
He knew it would change the outcome of Gibbs' team and the dynamic at NCIS and people may call him cold-hearted, but in all honesty, it was the only decision he could come to. Ok, it wasn't the only one, but it was the one he felt right about making.
"Yes," McGee answered with a nod.
"Do either of you remember how you acted towards Agent DiNozzo during that time?" Admiral Chegwidden asked, or rather, demanded. "Your actions were deplorable and filled with disrespect."
"With all due respect," Ziva shook her head, "We have never disrespected Tony."
"You refused orders," Hetty picked up as she looked through the folder, "left incomplete reports, left work early, on the scene you left Agent DiNozzo to do most of the work while the two of you did whatever you wanted and when reprimanded, you commented on how he was not Agent Gibbs and he should stop acting that way, you told him he wasn't your boss." She stopped when she saw the look on McGee's face, "Do you have something to say Mr. McGee?"
"It wasn't that we disrespected him" McGee said after sharing a look with Ziva, "At the time, we were just tired of the way he was acting."
"And how exactly was he acting?" Morrow asked, his voice low and dangerous. It galled him to think that these two could stand there and actually try and reason their way out of they had done. They were actually making excuses for their actions towards DiNozzo when there was no excuse.
"Well," McGee said, "sometimes it was as if he was trying to be Gibbs. He was acting like he knew better. We were all capable of being in charge, but—
"But nothing," Hetty cut him off, "It doesn't matter if you were capable of being the boss, that wasn't the issue. What the two of you failed to grasp was the concept that not only has Agent DiNozzo been an agent longer than the both of you, but he is the Senior Field Agent, and as such, in the absence of Agent Gibbs, he was in charge and you should've treated him as such."
McGee and Ziva were ashamed. They knew they hadn't treated Tony right during Gibbs' absence, but they had never made an effort to apologize or do better.
"Did either of ever wonder just how your reports got done?" Morrow asked, "DiNozzo stayed back late every night to do the reports that the both of you refused to do. He picked up the slack, helped everyone deal with Agent Gibbs' absence and not once did he complain about it. He did his work, your work and still gave in to former Director Sheppard's demands to go undercover just to fulfil a personal vendetta."
Shock covered their faces; they hadn't known that.
"I take it by the looks on your faces you didn't know that did you?" Hetty replied, "And how did you repay him? You treated him like a dog; as if he was incompetent and couldn't do the job, despite the fact that he had been doing it longer than either of you."
"The both of you should've been written up for your actions then," SECNAV said, "I don't know why Agent DiNozzo didn't report you, but even so, Director Sheppard should've paid better attention to her agents rather than focusing on her personal crusade."
"And to top it all off," Morrow added, "When Agent Gibbs returned, the both of you took great pleasure in reminding Agent DiNozzo of what you had repeatedly told him; that he wasn't your boss and he could never be as good of a boss as Agent Gibbs was. And then this mess; Agent DiNozzo trusted the both of you. He was counting on you to be there for him and you let him down. You let this agency down."
"Do either of you understand the seriousness of the situation?" Vance asked, "Or do you believe that you're just going to get a reprimand and a suspension?"
The two looked away guiltily. That's exactly what they had believed.
"You think that a suspension is the only punishment you should receive?" Admiral Chegwidden raised an eyebrow.
"I think we made a mistake," Ziva said, "and yes, I know I have said that before and I know it was a mistake that should not have been made, but we have both been outstanding agents. This is the first and only time we have done something like this and I do not think we should lose our jobs over it."
"Your actions resulted in a homicide," Hetty stated.
"That was not our fault!" McGee protested.
"It's called negligent homicide," Hetty continued, "You may not have beaten that woman to death, but the fact of the matter is, if you hadn't turned off the radio, you would've known your partner was in trouble and that he needed help and that woman wouldn't have been killed. So while you may not have directly caused her death, you could've stopped it."
Neither McGee nor Ziva could say anything to that because she was right. If they hadn't turned off the radio, Tony wouldn't have ended up in the hospital and Vidalia would still have her mother.
"You're right," McGee nodded, "We never should've turned off the radio. Tony trusted us to have his back and not only that but we had a job to do. We broke protocol and because of that, people suffered and we will have that on our conscience for the rest of our lives. We made things even worse, when, instead of coming clean, we lied to our boss about what really happened and falsified our reports. We panicked and we messed up."
"This job," Ziva continued on, "it is everything to me. This place is my home and I do not wish to lose it."
"You may not have a choice," SECNAV frowned, "I will be honest. The both of you are very capable and very good at doing your jobs; I'm not sure I know of anyone that is able to move through the cyber world the way you do McGee and David, your Mossad background is an asset. However, the truth of the matter is, no matter how good you are, you broke protocol and you have to face the consequences for that."
The phone rang, cutting off whatever reply was about to be made.
"Excuse me," Vance said as he moved to answer it, "this is Vance." He paused, "Send them in."
Five minutes later, the door opened and Gibbs and Tony walked in.
Neither man looked at their former teammates.
"Agent Gibbs, Agent DiNozzo," SECNAV greeted as did the others.
"Sirs, Madam," Tony replied while Gibbs nodded.
McGee and Ziva stared at the two in shock and apprehension. They had had no idea Tony and Gibbs would be there and they were worried; the last time they saw Gibbs, he had ordered them off his team and to stay away from Tony.
Glancing at each other and then back at Gibbs and Tony—both of whom had unreadable expressions—McGee and Ziva had the same thoughts running through their minds;
Why were they here? And what did it mean for their future at NCIS?
A/N 2: I couldn't figure out how to end the chapter *laughs*, so, if it's not a perfect ending, that's why *grins*. Since you're at this point, review so I can know what you thought.
Next Update: Friday 14th December, '12.
Kila