Thanks to my beta Kristen! I seem to have wound up writing another story involving a series of pranks...

Chapter 3: Conflict

Jennifer Shepard stepped into the elevator, her mind focused on the day ahead. She had several meetings before lunch, an MTAC conference with the director of the FBI in the afternoon, and a big pile of paperwork to be dealt with at some point.

Still, she was sure she could find some time to talk to Ziva and see if Tony had worked out who was responsible for his car tires. She doubted he would work it out.

Jethro was another matter. She knew she had slipped up in front of him by mentioning the incident before she was supposed to have heard of it. Nevertheless, it wasn't as though he would do anything about it except bring it up in their next fight. He really was too predictable.

Not that she would ever say it to his face. Yet he could rarely truly surprise her. Even when he burst into her office without knocking and caught her off guard, she was not surprised. If he waited outside for Cynthia to announce him, she would probably have a heart attack.

The elevator doors opened and she walked along the catwalk to MTAC. She didn't need to enter her office for a little bit, so she decided she might as well enjoy a change of scenery.

She certainly didn't expect to find her car inside, with a small group of technicians standing around looking confused.

"How did this get here?" she demanded. She cast her mind back to the parking garage. She hadn't seen her car, but she hadn't been looking for it either.

One of the technicians shrugged. "Found it here when I came in this morning. How are we getting it out of here?"

"Figure something out," she told him. She didn't have the energy to deal with this right now. It wasn't as though she would have to expend much effort to work out who this was.

Jethro.

He was going to be in a lot of trouble when she got her hands on him.

Leroy Jethro Gibbs was waiting patiently until Jenny caught up with him. He knew it would only be a matter of time, and she had definitely figured out who it was.

As he had dealt with paperwork and attempted to keep his team on the straight and narrow, he had kept half an eye on the comings and goings from MTAC. It took them a while to work out how to get the car out, but he kept his distance. It had taken him long enough to get the damn thing in there and he certainly wasn't going to help remove it.

Tony yawned again, making him look across at his agent. It was obvious that he was in dire need of sleep; the coffee having failed long ago. But he seemed determined to stick around and enjoy the fun. And he was even attempting to work for once.

In the meantime, Ziva looked very puzzled. Gibbs was fairly sure that Jenny had not managed to talk to her yet, but the news of the car had spread rapidly all over the Navy Yard. Ziva was trying to work out if this was connected to her attack on Tony's car, and Gibbs was sorely tempted to send her upstairs to see Jenny. For now, she was left to wonder.

McGee appeared completely lost. The younger agent didn't enjoy the fights between Tony and Ziva, and tried his best to stay out of them. This had to be confusing him.

He glanced up as Jenny entered the squad room. "Going for coffee," she told him. "Want to come?"

Nodding, he grabbed his gun and followed her into the elevator. He doubted they were really going for coffee, but it needed to look the part for his agents. He didn't blink as she flipped the emergency stop.

"Something wrong, Director?" he inquired.

"Why did you put my car in MTAC?" she hissed, glaring at him.

"Why did you slit Tony's tires?" he smirked. "You weren't expecting revenge? You've been behind a desk for too long."

She continued to glare at him as she reactivated the elevator. "This isn't over," she warned.

Ziva David stared out across the parking garage. The coast was still clear.

"Why are we doing this again?" she asked.

She did not have to turn around to see Jenny struggling with the car as she answered. "Because Jethro took my car to pieces."

"Because we slit Tony's tires? It does not make sense," Ziva countered.

"He is getting revenge for what we did to Tony. And as he knows I was part of it, he decided to get back at me," Jenny explained. "This really isn't working."

"Then you stand guard," the Israeli ordered.

She waited until the redhead was in position before ducking down and sorting the problem out.

"Nice plan," Jenny admired.

"He should not have allowed himself to get involved. This was between myself and Tony," Ziva pointed out, standing back up again.

"I'm sure he doesn't see it that way," Jenny mused. "How did you manage to get hold of a firework at this time of the year?"

Ziva smiled. "You do not need to know that. I find them to be very useful for a number of things."

The redhead glanced at the back of Gibbs' car. "I think it might be a little too visible," she noted.

The Israeli followed her gaze. "Just a bit," she agreed. "Keep a watch again." She bent down and tried to shift the firework a little.

"Done?" Jenny inquired.

"Done," Ziva confirmed. "I hope that Gibbs does not check his car for bombs every time he sets off or he will find our present a little early."

"He doesn't," Jenny verified. "He won't spot it now."

They walked away together, leaving the firework in Gibbs' exhaust pipe, both aware that this was now war.

And they planned to win.