So sorry for the long wait.

It was the third night this week that they could hear voices coming from the round table. Hotch and Rossi knew who the voices belonged to, the newest agent to the unit and his former partner from NCIS.

Anthony DiNozzo, better known as Tony, an enigma if there ever was one. His partner had been coming to see Tony two, three times a week ever since he got fired, two months ago. Whenever they were in town McGee would show up. Logically he knew why Tony continued to help Agent McGee it was part of his make-up. Partners help partners or in this case former partners, until they cross that invisible line.

Tony might have lots of contacts in the law enforcement community but Hotch was no newbie either. It didn't take him long to get a feeling of the work environment in Tony's old job. And he could understand in a way why Tony couldn't in all conscious let McGee sink under the pressure. At least for now, but in knowing aboutTony he knew his old partner and from everything he heard it would only be a matter of time before his former partner crossed a line, and pushed Tony to react.

To put it simply Agent Gibbs was a not an easy man to work for, having grown up in an abusive home Tony was able to deflect and take the abuse that came his way. It was second nature with him, and like all abused children he protected those around him from the abuser, or in Gibbs case a man with a volatile disposition.

"It's perfect McGee just the way it is, you've mastered the art of writing a report that fits both Gibbs and Vance's requirements."

"At least on these kinds of case reports." Tim sighs and sips some coffee. "What about the all the other paperwork it's never ending."

"That will come in time, practice makes perfect, you'll develop your own routine to get everything done in time. The job as it is, second in command has its rewards it also has it's drudgery. Paperwork in all its glory and lots of it. Have you started doing some Gibbs' paperwork yet?"

"God no, I can't even keep up with my own, How did you every get it all done on time?"

"I came in at midnight and worked for a couple of hours, it's amazing just how much you can get done without someone barking at you. How is your Probie?"

"She's fine, doing better."

"Good don't forget to feed and water her. Gibbs once on a tear tends to forget little things like eating and sleeping."

"I will."

"Good." Tony tells him

"So have you made a play for that techie yet? I bet she can teach you how to type better than your two finger hunt and peck. Is she as sweet the Cookie nickname you gave her?" He asks with a smirking smile.

Hearing that Hotch and Rossi lift their head and wait for Tony's reaction before they take matters into their own hands.

Tony's face become blank as he stood. "I know how to type Agent McGee, and my two finger hunt and peek suits me just fine thank you. Don't come back here for help you're on your own, you my friend just burned your last bridge with me. You know that old saying as good as you think you are there is always someone, somewhere better than you?"

"Yeah so what?" Tim says as he grabs his things, not understand why Tony has become so cold toward him.

"Penelope Garcia is better than you, by tenfold. Scary smart and the nicest person I've ever known. She is not the kind of woman that you take to dinner in hopes of getting laid. She is the kind you date and woo, she is the kind of woman that you walk to her door after a date. You kiss her cheek but only if she lets you and you wait until she locks the door before you leave. She is the kind you marry and make a life with, the kind of woman you share all of your hopes and dream with,. Just so you know I'm not in her league she deserves so much better than me, you get it now?"

"You're so full of shit. You'd take her to bed if you could, what did she do turn you down? I bet your losing your touch Tony you'd be better off hitting up the over forty divorced and lonely dating sites. And for your information I hardly doubt that some techie for the FBI can be better than me. I mean look at her if she was any good she would be working for the CIA. She is a run of the mill analyst nothing more. " Tim replies with a haughty smirk.

"Right, I forgot, you and your MIT and Johns Hopkins degrees." Tony replies with a tight smile.

Hotch and Rossi watch as Tony follows Tim out of the round table and pretend to trip and lose his balance catching himself on Tim's shoulder hard, sending Tim and all of the paperwork that they had just spent the last two hours working on scatter on the floor.

"Sorry about that, must be my old age catching up with me, an over the hill jock isn't that what you call me? Let me pick them up it's the least I can do."

Tim nods and rubs his shoulder as Tony picks up all of the papers. Once he has all of the papers in his hands, he looks at them then at Tim, smiling he rips the papers in half then in half again before throwing them in the air. "You always said you could do the job of senior field agent better than me, well now you can. Get out of here McGee."

He waits until Tim is out of the unit before he says anything to Hotch and Rossi. "I'm sorry for that."

"For what? I didn't see anything, did you Aaron?" Rossi says with sly expression on his face.

"Don't leave that mess for the janitors please"

"Wouldn't dream of it Hotch."

Tony was home within an hour, he really liked his new apartment it was Derek who helped him find one as well as move. He saw no reason to stay in his old place it was just too far away from Quantico, and too close to the Navy Yard.

After tossing together a quick and simple meal, he sat on his couch and thought about Tim and his attitude, he badly needed a lesson in humility. Thinking back on his days in Philly he remembers being told about a hacker that would teach a lesson to others but only if the lesson was justified, it was like giving the person a digital spanking. He remembers that no money changed hands and he would have to perform a good deed to someone else as payment like a pay it forward. How the hacker knew the deed was done was never known, but if you didn't pay it forward you were given a digital spanking as well, only worse.

He dug out his laptop and a notebook from his safe, finding the email address he wanted from a long list with no corresponding names. He sent a request that he needed a certain person taught a lesson. About common curiosity and humility.

After sending the email he knew he would get one of two replies, one would say no, the other would simply say play it forward once the spanking was administered. He hoped he would get the latter.

There was a chill in the air, so when he walked into the bullpen with a container of instant hot cocoa both Reid and Penelope smiled.

"Thank you so much Tony, I forgot to stop and buy some last night."

"Not a probable Cookie." He tells her as he puts the cocoa on the counter in the kitchenette.

"After I talk to Hotch I'll have a cup, that is as long as Reid leaves me some."

"Hey I'm not that bad." Spencer protests.

"Don't worry it was a two pack I left the other on in my car." Tony tells them as he pours some hot water over his tea bag.

"Penelope walks up to Hotch's office and knocks on the open door before stepping in, but what she does after that makes him look at her with a raised eyebrow. She closes the door.

"Penelope?"

"The Black Queen got an email last night from a very old account it was routed through twenty different servers." Hotch waited for her to gather her thoughts. "It was from Tony, Agent DiNozzo he was asking for a digital spanking for his old partner. I have no idea how he got a hold of that old email, I haven't done anything like that for years."

"He was a detective for a long time, a good one too. He has a long list of contacts, I would be surprised if he didn't have her email."

"So what do I do?"

Hotch looks at her and with a ghost of a smile ."Administer the spanking, and Penelope?"

"Sir?"

"Making it a good one, one worthy of the Black Queen."

"Yes sir. It will be my pleasure."