Chapter Eight

Gibbs looked across the conference table at Tali; she was fidgeting with her hands and was desperately trying to avoid eye contact with him. After confessing that she had runaway Jenny had left the room to call Ziva, leaving her alone with him.

"Why'd you run away?" he asked breaking the silence.

She lifted her head up slowly and Gibbs caught her gaze, he raised his eyebrows prompting her to respond. After a few moments she shrugged and broke their eye contact, but didn't look away from him completely; Gibbs knew he had succeeded.

"I was mad I my mom." Tali replied quietly. He opened his mouth to ask why but she continued all her words tumbling out at once. "A few years ago when I asked about my dad she said that she only spent one night with him and she didn't know who he was. She said he didn't mean anything to her and I accepted that because I love my mom and she is all I have ever needed. But then last night I found out that somehow we had moved back from Israel to a town where my dad just happened to live in and he works at the school I'm going to. Last night when they told me, I freaked out and I admit I probably shouldn't have yelled at her like I did, but she could have at least tried to understand how I was feeling."

After she had finished her face had become hot and red with anger that Gibbs recognized from both of her parents. He thought about saying something, but decided to let her cool off.

Tali looked up at him a few seconds later her face back to a normal color, a look of guilt in her eyes. "I'm sorry I went off like that."

"Don't worry about it." He replied, giving her a small smile. "I've seen both your parents get just as angry before on more than one occasion."

"Really?" She asked curiously, sitting up a bit straighter in her chair.

"Oh yeah." Gibbs grinned at the way her eyes had lit up; she really did just want to learn about who her parents were. He turned his attention to the door as Jenny walked back in.

"Your Mom and Tony are on their way here now and should get into D.C. around noon." she said looking at Tali, then turned and looked at Gibbs. "I told them that she would stay with you until they got here."

"Alright." He stood up, as did Tali picking up her book bag.

"Tali about those questions you had…"

Tali opened her mouth to answer but Gibbs did instead, "I've got it covered Jen."

She smiled, "Okay, make sure to call when Tony and Ziva get there."

He nodded, then he and Tali left, his hand resting protectively on her shoulder.

"This is it." Gibbs said as they stood just inside his door. "It's been a few years since anyone's been in here so it's probably a bit dusty. Though it was just as dusty when I did live here all the time."

"Makes no difference to me." She smiled at him. "Thank you for letting me stay with you Gibbs."

"Don't worry about it." He led her into the living room and she sat on the couch, dropping her backpack on the floor beside her. He glanced at his watch. "Have you had breakfast?"

"Um…" she didn't have to finish as her stomach growled loudly.

"Pancakes sound good?" Gibbs asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah, thanks." Tali grinned.

He left the room and walked to the kitchen; but as he opened the cupboard where the pancake mix should have been he realized that there was no food in his house due to the fact that he had been gone the past fourteen years. Gibbs walked back out to the living room.

"Well I can't make…" he stopped midsentence, the corners of his lips turned up in a smile.

Tali had fallen asleep on the sofa, her head rested on her hand that was propped against the arm of the couch; Gibbs figured she had probably gotten either little or no sleep on the bus last night. He wasn't about to let her sleep on his uncomfortable couch so he picked her up and took her upstairs to Kelly's old room. He laid her on the bed and covered her up with the faded quilt, a feeling of melancholy filling him as he thought about how long it had been since he had been in this room and tucked in his own daughter. Gibbs pushed these thoughts to the back of his mind as he exited the room and closed the door softly behind him. He made his way down to the basement, closing his eyes as he inhaled the familiar scent of wood. He approached the boat he had left unfinished fourteen years ago, trying to remember what he had last done to it. Gibbs studied the frame of the boat and discovered he had not finished sanding it yet. He looked around the room for his sander, walking over to his work bench and moving a few things around. He finally found it under some newspapers, he leaned under the cabinets on the wall and was about to stand up when a scream from upstairs startled him and he hit his head on the cabinet.

"Damn." Gibbs rubbed the back of his head as the yells continued. He ran up to the second floor and burst into Kelly's old room to find Tali tossing and turning in her sleep.

"No! No! Don't, take her away. Bring her back! Please!" She cried out in her sleep; tears were running down her face in torrents.

"Tali, wake up it's only a dream." He placed his hands on her shoulders and her eyes shot open.

She sat up and looked at him, tears filled her eyes. "G-Gibbs?"

He wrapped his arms around her and stroked her hair while she cried into his chest. "Shh, everything's okay."

After a few minutes she pulled away, wiping the last of her tears away on her sleeve. "Thank you."

Gibbs nodded. "Can you tell me what happened?"

"It was just a dream or a memory actually." Tali explained. "When I was little my grandfather tried to train me like he had my mom. I don't remember exactly what happened, but I know he took me away from my mom very abruptly."

"You said he tried to train you like your mom, so you knew that she was Mossad?" he asked curiously.

"She didn't go into much detail, she just said that he wasn't a good man and his 'people' weren't either." She answered looking around the room. "How did I get here?"

"You fell asleep on the couch, but I figured you'd be more comfortable up here." He explained. "You sure you're alright?"

"Yeah, I guess I'm just a bit shaken; I haven't had that dream in a while." Tali replied sheepishly.

"Come with me, I think I know how to git rid of that feeling." Gibbs stood up and walked to the door, waiting for her to follow before leading her to the basement.

"You're building a boat? How are you going to get it out?" She asked incredulously staring at the frame that rested on sawhorses.

"That part's a secret." He grinned and picked up the sander then handed it to her, than grabbed another from his workbench and began sanding a board. "Go ahead, it helps."

Tali slowly lifted the tool to the boat frame and began moving her arms up and down. They were both silent the only sound in the room coming from their hands. "Why are you building this?"

"It keeps me busy." Gibbs answered knowing there would be more questions following this one by the look on her face.

"The room upstairs that I was in is it-I mean do you have kids?" she asked glancing at him.

"I did."

"Oh, I'm sorry." Tali whispered her hands paused their movements.

"Don't be, you didn't know." He thought about mentioning rule six, but thought she might not understand. "Technically I…"

He was interrupted as he heard his front door open and close. "Gibbs, Tali?" called a familiar voice.

Gibbs glanced over at Tali who had visibly tensed up since he had last looked at her. He took the sander from her and set both of them on the work bench, then placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"I know your mom, she'll be more worried than upset." He whispered, trying to give her an encouraging smile.

"If you say so."

A/N: Okay so this my first full Gibbs POV chapter and I would really love some feedback on how I did. Sooooo shoot me a review!