Chapter 3
Tim looked around at the team all looking at him expectantly.
"Ok, we had better head out, Boss, Tony, Abby you have better come too, dressed like that maybe some of the Ne'er's will talk to you." Tim looked at Ducky and Palmer, "I'm sorry, I know you really want to see some of my world and I promise you I will take you another time, but right now we have to go."
Ducky nodded, "That's fine lad. We have another autopsy to be getting on with, I do look forward to sitting down with you and your uncle and hearing some of the stories you have some time."
"I don't really have any stories, I'm quite young, Vance on the other hand…." Tim smiled "Is a lot older and has way more stories than I do."
Tony grabbed his bag and walked over to Tim, "So Tiny Tim, just how old are you?"
Tim shrugged, "Thirty three." He replied, "And a bit…"He mumbled.
"How much of a bit?" Gibbs asked intrigued.
Tim mumbled something and turned away, "What was that?" Gibbs asked.
"A hundred…"
Abby looked at him, "One hundred and thirty three?!" she exclaimed as Tim nodded.
Tony smirked and could hardly contain himself, "And Vance calls you 'little one'!" he laughed.
"Well I am the last born." Tim said and then shook his head, "Come on, or we'll be late."
Gibbs handed Tim the keys, "Come on then Elf-Lord, you know where we are going." He climbed in the passenger seat as Tony and Abby got in the back.
Tim pulled the car up outside a bunch of disused warehouses; the buildings were condemned and looked in imminent danger of collapse.
"Is this safe?" Abby asked looking around her.
Tim nodded; they started to walk forward, "Stop." He said and walked over to a strange design carved on a tree standing to one side.
He knocked on the tree and put his hand on the panel. "Ow!" he exclaimed as a small blue creature bit him then giggled and ran back towards its hole halfway their it let out a tiny shriek and died, Tim picked it up and stroked life back into the creature and the others watched amazed, "Bloody gremlins, they are like toddlers always getting into mischief." he cussed.
"You can bring things back to life?" Tony asked in a hushed but angry tone.
"Yeah but…."Tim started.
"Kate, Tim, you could have brought back Kate." Tony growled angrily.
Tim shook his head, "No I couldn't, In the eyes of my people I am only a child, I can't do things like that I don't have the power, the best I could do was allow you to all have some time with her after she died. So you could say goodbye."
They stopped and looked at him. "She was really there, you did that."
Tim nodded sadly. "I did…Father waited until you were all done and then he took her beyond."
Gibbs walked over and hugged his Agent, "Thank you Tim, I appreciate you doing that for us all."
He said as they looked at the warehouses as the scene before the group shifted.
At first it was like looking into a rippling pond the buildings began to wave and shimmer, then like watching a bursting balloon a whole in the shimmer appeared, the other side of the whole, though it was daylight here, it was night there.
He stepped through and motioned for the others to do the same. They did and within moment it was suddenly night; slowly the town around them began to appear.
People started to invade their vision, but the people were strange, off slightly, pointed ears, different color skin, sometimes not looking human at all, some looking like anyone else.
Tim waited as they got acclimatized to the new reality around them.
"Welcome to the Ne'er." He said without flourish and they all realized it was real.
The one thing Gibbs noticed was that there were no children; in fact no one looked younger than Tim.
"TIME!" A voice called and a woman in russet colors with long auburn hair came running up and grabbed Tim in a warm embrace.
Tim smiled and forgot he was with the others, "Aunt Fall, it's good to see you," he hugged her back.
"I hear you are to bring mortals to our realm?" she said sounding like she was chastising a child.
Tim lowered his head, but smiled, "I have them with me." He turned and introduced them to her, "This is my boss, Jethro Gibbs, Tony DiNozzo and Abigail Sciuto… Guy's this is my Aunt Fall, Vance's sister."
Looking at her they could see similarities.
"Pleased to meet you." Gibbs said extending his hand and admiring the dazzling colors in her hair.
Fall laughed and looked at Tim, "A redhead man right?" she asked conspiratorially.
Tim nodded. "We have to go; we are headed to The Inn. But Aunt Fall…If you see her…" He stopped hoping he wouldn't sound too sappy in front of his boss, "Tell her…tell her I love her."
Fall's face dropped, she clasped the youngest of them all in a hug, "She loves you too little one. One day, maybe mother will let you both be together." She kissed his forehead and with what sounded like the rustle of leaves she disappeared.
He turned and the others looked at him.
"You have a girlfriend?" Tony asked.
Tim shook his head, "No, she's my mothers' sister."
Tony looked sad, he missed his mom and she had died when he was eight, he couldn't imagine how hard it must be for Tim to have lived all these years knowing he could never see his mother and she wasn't dead.
"Tell us about her?" Tony asked as they walked up the cobblestoned street.
Tim stopped as his face lightened up, "I have been told she is beautiful, I have her eyes…Sometimes I feel her when she is near, but she is not allowed direct contact she is an elemental, she should not have created me with my father, but he is endless and she fell for him. Even though they are the antithesis of each other. She creates life and my father takes it."
Tony stopped, "Your mother creates life?"
Tim gave a half smile, "Every year."
Abby hugged him, "Tim…who is your mother?"
Tim sighed, "My mother is Gaia's daughter, Springtime."
Tim looked up and realized that he had walked all the way to The Inn. "Oh, we're here." He said.
They stopped and looked at what to Tony's mind could only be described as a 'hobbit hole' type of building, something you would see in a fantasy movie. "Wow!" he said without thinking.
Tim grinned "I knew you'd like it," he laughed.
Gibbs was admiring the workmanship of the building, like the buildings of the middle ages, where the wooden door and lintel had been carved to perfection with strange writing engraved on it.
"Tim, is that writing?" Gibbs asked pointing up at the swirly patterns.
Tim nodded, "Mab's people, the Faye. The keep the balance, it is a warning that all that enter here are welcome and fighting will result in banishment to the null."
"The null?"
Tim smiled, "I'm not sure if it's true, we have our own legends, the Null is where there is nothing, no form or substance no feelings…It was a bedtime story to help children behave. However no one challenges it," he told them.
"Wow and I thought my mother's Louis the XIV furniture was scary!" Tony gasped, "That must have given you nightmares?"
"Nope, my father telling me about his day gave me nightmares." Tim smiled as he opened the door.
A short man no taller than 2ft 5 came over to the group, "Honored Guests please enter my establishment."
"Young sir, your father informed us of the council's decision and your arrival with your honored guests." The man bowed
"Sykes," Tim smiled a happy smile and reached down and lifted him up twirling him around as the small man laughed. "Your still here?"
"Where else would I be?" Sykes asked.
"Where are we meeting?" Tim asked.
"In your playroom." Sykes replied straight faced as Tim blushed and Tony sniggered. "Would your guests be wanting to have something to drink?"
"Playroom?" Tony asked.
"Sykes is for want of a better word my childminder." Tim said not realizing that he had said is rather than was.
"Bourbon?" Gibbs asked.
Sykes nodded, "I do carry some of the more exotic mortal beverages."
"Two." Tony asked.
Abby looked along the bar and squealed, "You have Caf-Pow?" she said excitedly.
Sykes smiled, "My favorite drink." He admitted.
Tim looked up, "Bourbon?" he asked hopefully.
Sykes looked at him, "Give you a man's drink, little one, I already have your drink ready, A Hairy Ogre Hangover."
Tim sighed as the bartender handed him the large glass of purple drink.
"Isn't that the drink you invented?" Abby asked.
Sykes laughed, "No, it's been a children's favorite for a millennium."
Tim took his drink and took a swig, "It's still my favorite." He added with a smile.
"I'll bring your drinks back to your room," Sykes said.
Tim nodded carrying his he walked back past the patrons who were looking at Tim's guests and whispering in hushed tones.
Tim stopped at a large wooden door and opened it.
The room was huge, there was a large bed covered with furs in the corner and big throw pillows on it, a large rug covered the floor and various pictures of what would in a mortal child's room amount to celebrities adorned the wall, there were racks and racks of old leather bound books and a large desk made out of hand carved oak stood in the corner with a large leather chair behind it.
There was a large oak table in the middle of the room and on one wall were pictures of Tim as a child and through the years in various types of outfits and with some strange looking animals.
Tim stopped as he entered, "Cerb?" he asked.
A deep growl sounded shaking the room, though the team could see nothing. A smoky black mass bowled Tim over. Gibbs and Tony drew their guns, but Tim was laughing. "Cerb….Cerberus you oversized lump, get off me….Good Dog."
Tim stood on tiptoes and stroked the air a good foot about his head. "Good boy."
The others watched this exchange in awe; they could see nothing but a faint Smokey outline.
"Bed." Tim ordered another deep bark later and the room shook as the mass bounced away.
Tim turned at the shocked look on the teams faces.
"Cerberus, the Cerberus? The guard dog of Hell?" Gibbs asked remembering his ancient Greek.
Tim nodded, "the fourth one, he's only a puppy." He grinned.
Tony looked stunned, "He's seven freaking feet tall and only a puppy!"
Tim nodded, "uh huh." He took his boots off and climbed on his huge bed crossing his legs and looking totally at home.
"Settle down guys, it may be a while before my father finds my brother." Tim said, "He could be anywhere in the Ne'er."
Gibbs sat on the large leather chair, he watched his agent relax reading a book in a language he couldn't understand. He couldn't believe that this morning he had been looking at his agent like the green Probie on the team. Now he was the most knowledgeable person in the room.
He closed his eyes, he didn't know how long they would wait, but he wanted to be ready for when this meeting with Tim's brother actually took place; and with the rumble of snoring from the seven foot; 'invisible' dog in the corner, Gibbs found himself quickly lulled into sleep.