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ncisficathonTitle: Ligers and Tigons and Tony, Oh My (3/?)
Author:![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
justhuman
Written for:spoonyriffic
Prompt: Tony/Gibbs - Supernatural (the genre, not the show) - a series of strange killings in DC leave our favorite NCIS team puzzled, and soon it is revealed that there is something more nefarious behind it all. First Time fic. Rating between R or NC-17, whichever is best for the fic.
Archive: Please ask
Genre: teamfic, adventure, romance
Pairings: Gibbs/DiNozzo, mentions of canon pairings and maybe a surprise
Rating: NC-17 overall, PG this section
Disclaimer: CBS
Word Count: 6425, this part
Summary: While working a case, Tony runs into a problem with potentially deadly consequences. Now it's up to the team to do what they do best and investigate until they find a solution.
A/N: Many thanks toluvinmike and tejas for the beta assistance in this part. As always, all mistakes are mine.
Part 1 - Harvest Moon
Part 2 - After the Harvest Moon
Part 3 - Hunter's Moon
***Saturday, October 3, 2009 Full Moon, Day 1, Waxing Gibbous
On autopilot, Gibbs went to the kitchen and waited for the coffee maker to finish brewing his first cup. Caffeine in hand, he showered and dressed. Like he did every morning, Gibbs contemplated the best location to add a cup holder to the shower and wondered why he didn't get a second coffee maker just for the bedroom.
Once he was ready for work, Gibbs headed down the hall and pushed open the door to the small guest room. The blankets were kicked off the bed, and Tony was starfished across the mattress on his belly, in nothing but his skivvies. Gibbs felt a little rush go through his body that usually took a sassy red head to generate. He wasn't usually interested in guys, but he'd be lying if he said that it had never happened before.
In high school, Gibbs hadn't understood what he was feeling, but knew exactly what people would think. His father would probably say that it had added to the chip that had been on his shoulder. He never gave a thought to how the situation might have gotten worse, living in close quarters with a platoon of Marines. He was fortunate on all accounts that Shannon had come into his life. Thoughts of her had dissolved away any passing desires, male or female.
Sometimes Tony tempted him, which only seemed fair because Tony worked so hard at tempting everyone. One day Tim would figure it out and no doubt deck him. But indulging those feelings, that would be a multi-level disaster for both Gibbs and Tony. Still, it didn't hurt to look sometimes. That was Gibbs' story, and he was going to stick with it, because it was going to be the only way to survive the DiNozzo occupation.
In stark contrast to the energy that Tony had had the night before, in sleep his face was peaceful and his breathing easy. Gibbs knew that he hadn't seen that in over a month. And damn him, but he missed Tony's smile.
Gibbs needed a little space and a second cup of coffee. "DiNozzo!"
Tony jumped a little and snuggled a pillow. "Right here, Boss, I'll have those reports in a minute. Getting my ass into gear. I'll get McGee. McGee!"
At least Gibbs was going to get some entertainment out of Tony moving in. "Not at the office yet, DiNozzo."
Tony jumped a little, squinting open his eyes and then frowning deeply. "Wait - It's Saturday!"
"We're the on-call team today. Not enough notice to get us out of it this month."
Tony looked over his shoulder, like he was trying to make out who Gibbs was. "This sucks, worse than Mondays. I'll be ready in twenty minutes, Boss."
"Make it ten," Gibbs said and then turned to walk downstairs.
"But I gotta shower or nobody's gonna be happy today," Tony whined. Gibbs smiled as he listened to the complaints over his shoulder until it ended with, "Why's it so hot in here?"
Turning around, Gibbs headed back up and intercepted Tony before he stepped into the bathroom. He put his hand on Tony's forehead and then the back of his neck. "I keep the thermostat below 65."
"My mom used to kiss my forehead to find out if I had a fever," Tony said. Gibbs smacked him lightly on the back of the head. "Somehow that doesn't seem as effective, Boss."
"Sit." Gibbs pointed at the toilet and opened the medicine cabinet. It was already half-full of a dizzying assortment of Tony's stuff, but he spotted the thermometer. He gave it a quick rinse, shook it down, and then stuck it in Tony's mouth. "Under the tongue."
"Boss, you don't have to do this," Tony mumbled around the glass.
"We can do this the easy way or the hard way, DiNozzo. Is it under your tongue, or do I have to look for another appropriate orifice?"
Tony clamped his mouth closed and shook his head. The quiet lasted about thirty seconds.
"Boss, Ducky said I had a fever yesterday. Probably still there."
"Yeah? How come I didn't get that info in a sit-rep? What did Ducky tell you to do?"
"Monitor it," Tony mumbled.
Gibbs leaned down. "And did you? Did you check your temperature last night?"
Tony looked wide-eyed and guilty - not guilty in that he-was-sorry-he-messed-up way, but in the sorry-he-got-caught-way.
Gibbs pulled the thermometer out of his mouth and turned it to read it. Then he turned it again, holding it out a little further away.
"Here, Boss." Tony held out his hand, obviously putting it together that Gibbs couldn't make it out.
Sighing in frustration, Gibbs handed it to him.
"One oh two point five," Tony said and stood up. "Look, I can't... I can't dwell on every detail like Abby and McGee. I'm already half-crazy and fixating on my rapid decline isn't helping. Let me get into the shower, and I'll be ready in ten." He turned towards the tub and fiddled with the water.
Gibbs slipped the thermometer back into its case and put it on the sink. Heading downstairs, he fought the urge to go back upstairs and try to knock some sense into Tony, but there was no sense to be had in any of it.
***
Tony knew he was going to have to put the nix on the carpooling thing right away. It wasn't like he had a delicate tummy, but he needed to be more awake or to have a substantial breakfast before he was ready to face a Gibbs' roller coaster ride. He had to admit that the Challenger had some serious performance. Since it was Saturday, there was a lot of room on the road to test it out, and Gibbs wasn't wasting the opportunity.
The privacy of his own car and the routine of driving on his own would have been nice. There was something Zen about a gentle cruise down the highway. According to Gibbs, one wasn't supposed to drive with a hundred and two degree fever. Who knew? Well, technically Tony did because it had only taken one hundred and one to lay him out when he had Valley Fever. The thing was that today Tony felt completely fine, if only a little hot. He was good, ready for the day - just a little hungry.
The one fortunate thing about getting a ride to work with Gibbs was that it involved a boss-approved stop for coffee. You couldn't be late if your stop involved getting Gibbs coffee. Tony figured Gibbs must have been on his sixth or seventh cup, but Gibbs claimed that it was only his fourth. Some decent coffee was on Tony's list - better than the evil sludge that came out of Gibbs' machine - but what Tony really needed was breakfast.
Everything behind the counter was looking really good. He added a bear claw to his bacon and egg on a roll. Then he immediately struck that and doubled up on both items, hoping it would be enough to tide him over until lunch.
Gibbs eyed his bag, and instinctively Tony held it closer to his chest.
"Did you order for the whole team, DiNozzo?"
Tony looked at his bag, looked at Gibbs and then smiled at the woman at the cash register. "Add on half a dozen croissants." Out of the corner of his eye, Tony could see Gibbs rolling his eyes, but Tony had more important things on his mind. Half a dozen would only mean one for him. He cleared his throat. "Make that a dozen."
***
Breakfast had been good for about ten minutes and then Tony wanted more. He hit the snack machine on his way back from his morning meeting with Ducky's thermometer and blood pressure cuff. Ducky wasn't even scheduled to be in, but he made the special trip for Tony. And a special visit it was, because it involved giving other kinds of samples and cheek swabs.
Saturday was always a potluck when it came to activity. You either had a major assault and no handy back up, or nothing but paperwork. Paperwork never went away. It was omnipresent, boring as hell, and doubly so on a Saturday.
Tony didn't have to worry about it much, because Gibbs kept sending him on errands - random, probie-type errands. It didn't seem fair that he was schlepping around doing things McGee should be doing. A lot of the errands involved dropping things off at empty desks, because it was Saturday.
Because he had been going stir crazy at his desk, Tony was glad to have a chance to walk around. On the outside he was cool and collected, but his brain was like a pinball machine, bouncing around all the crap in his life. He was strapped for cash because of the debt he owed his bastard cousin, forced to move into Dad's spare room, and shaking apart because he was on the verge of becoming a werewolf.
On one trip back from Legal, Tony stopped in the middle of the hall and wondered what the hell he was supposed to do. Yeah, there were days he was extra-hungry or extra-wired, but this was something else. The elevator dinged and he just stared inside at the lone occupant, Jim Rider from Communications. There was nothing interesting about Rider or the elevator.
"Earth to DiNozzo! I know we're all taking it a little easy because it's Saturday, but I'd rather not be here on Sunday. Are you getting in?" Rider asked.
"Yeah. No, I think I'm going to take the stairs." And Tony did, all the way to the top floor and back to the subbasement, finally returning to the squad room floor.
***
"DiNozzo!" Gibbs shouted at him, and Tony froze and wondered what the hell he had been doing this time that was driving everyone up a wall. During an earlier boss explosion, he found out that he wasn't as relaxed as he had originally thought. Why the hell hadn't they got a case? Then they could be out in the field, doing things instead of -
"If you don't stop that drumming and thumping, I'm going to drum you through a wall."
Right, restless tapping, again. "I'll stop, Boss. I promise," Tony said and really wished that he could believe it. There was no time to worry about that though because when he looked over, he saw that Cassie was gone. She was there the last time he had looked, and he was an attentive guy, so he shouldn't have missed her getting up. "Where'd Cassie go?"
Gibbs and McGee were both staring at him.
"Tony, we had that conversation at your desk. Cassie went to Norfolk to drop off some important paperwork and then take care of a personal errand," McGee said.
Tony mouthed personal errand because it sounded significant, a clue being dropped, something they apparently thought he should know something about it.
Gibbs tossed his pen on his desk and got up. "You two downstairs; we're going to some unarmed combat drills."
Stuff, doing stuff! Tony shot up and smiled at McGee, who was looking longingly at his computer screen.
"McGee, come on, the gym," Tony said it like they were heading to Disney World.
Now McGee was frowning at him in that geek way that said, I like my computer better.
"DiNozzo!"
"Yeah, Boss."
"The stairs - do a couple of laps before you hit the gym."
Tony experienced a moment of shock. The coach was sending him for laps already? Then there was a wash of relief because the last place he wanted to be was trapped in a confined space like an elevator, let alone one where Gibbs controlled the stop button. He bolted for the stairs.
Tony went up and down three times before he swung into the locker room and got into his workout clothes as fast as he could. Gibbs and McGee were already in the gym with Ducky. He got that sinking feeling again.
"Ducky, you're not dressed to work out, and you're supposed to be visiting your mother, mom, ma, mum?" Tony said and wondered if Ducky did call her mum.
"No, I'm not here to work out and I have visited Mother. I am told that you are more than ready for a workout, though. I was just hoping to interrupt for a moment to see if anything has changed since this morning."
Tony scratched at the back of his neck as an excuse not to glare at Gibbs and McGee. He wondered which one of them had called. He had a sinking feeling that both of them had. Was he that out of it? Finally he stepped in close to the group of men.
"Look, I know that I'm starting to behave like something out of a science fiction movie, which is bad enough without becoming someone's lab experiment." There, he said it.
"Tony, we're trying to help you," McGee said.
Ducky nodded. "Yes, but I can understand that it might not feel that way to Tony."
"Is anything you'd test now going to stop whatever is going to happen tonight?" Tony asked and regretted it. Saying it out loud made it more real. He knew the answer and was just hoping he'd be surprised
"Well, it's not just about tonight," Ducky started, trying to spin a situation into a better light, except that it wasn't a situation that could be spun.
"It's about characterizing what's going on so that maybe we can stop it from happening tomorrow night," McGee said.
Tony shoved his fingers through his hair. "You're making it sound like I can think past dinner time. Hell, you're making it sound like I know what's going to happen five minutes from now."
"McGee," Gibbs said. "Go hold the bag for a while. Tony, let out some of that energy."
Tony was more than happy to do that. He noticed that Gibbs held back with Ducky and was giving him the shushing motions. McGee grabbed the bag, looking like he was preparing for Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Terminator edition.
"Hey, Tony, we really are trying to help," McGee said.
"I know," Tony said and cocked his head.
"Jethro, I know that he's on edge, who could blame him, but we're not going to get anywhere without his cooperation."
"I know, Duck, I know. Let him work some of the energy off, and we'll see if you can't get some tests in before we leave. Is Abby downstairs?"
"Yes, she's running the samples that we took over the last few days. I can't explain everything, but things are definitely happening. We need more data."
"I know, but he may just have to get through tonight. It's been a month and the reality of the situation-"
"Isn't clear to any of us, Jethro," Ducky said. "None of us have seen what an entire cycle looks like."
"Ducky says I still have to take more tests," Tony said and slammed his fist into the bag.
"He did?" Tim said with a frown. "I mean, he probably does, but maybe they can wait."
Tony's fist hit the bag again and then shrugged his shoulder in Ducky's direction. "He said it, just now. I thought I was the one with short attention span this afternoon." Tony danced and hit the bag again.
"I didn't hear that, Tony. They're on the other side of the room."
"Yeah, but..." Tony was waving his arm randomly and then saw the look in McGee's eyes. "But you didn't hear it." Tony hit the bag again, hard.
"Tony," McGee said. It was kind of pleading and demanding all at the same time.
After a one-two combination, Tony stopped and turned towards Gibbs and Ducky. "New symptom, super hearing. I don't suppose we can hope that bullets will start bouncing off of me?"
***
Tony stared out the front window of the car until Gibbs pulled through the main gate of the Navy Yard and rocketed down the side street. It was only 16:30, but Gibbs had let them all go, because being late tonight was out of the question.
"Boss?"
"What?"
"This is insane. I'm in a whole other class of damaged goods right now, and in a little while I'm going to be downright dangerous."
Gibbs turned a sharp corner. "So?"
"So? So what does that mean, Boss? It means that I could kill someone for starters. It took a while for it to sink in, but I was a little distracted today."
Gibbs shot him a look.
"See! And I deserved that and every look McGee and Ducky gave me today. How the hell can you trust me to back you up? Hell, I wouldn't trust me to back me up right now."
"Down!" Gibbs swung the wheel hard. Before the turn was done, Tony had popped the buckle on his seat belt and slid down. While reaching for his weapon, he tried to see if there was anything in the side view mirror.
"What do we have?" Tony shouted.
"A highly trained special agent that can focus when he needs to," Gibbs said and continued to drive at a sedate pace - sedate by Gibbs' standards.
Tony looked at him. Then he caught up with the situation. He sat up in his seat. "Boss-"
"Don't Boss me, DiNozzo! You're scared, plain and simple. Nobody blames you for that, because tonight isn't going to be a walk in the park. Today, you reached new levels of distracted and distracting, even for you. But I've been telling people for years that you're good, and you just proved that you are."
Some tiny part of Tony's brain was protesting because that was the most left-handed of left-handed compliments, but the wash of feel-good feelings pushed it right out. "You tell people that I'm good - that I'm good at my job? Well, I am good, and of course, I know that you know that, but frankly, Boss, you're not known for being generous with your compliments."
Gibbs didn't have to say anything for Tony to know that Gibbs thought he was an idiot. It was written all over his expression.
"I'm shutting up, now," Tony said, and Gibbs responded by swinging into the parking lot of a pizza place.
Gibbs opened the door, talking as he got out. "Abby called in a pizza order."
Tony scrambled to get out of the car. Gibbs continued, like he didn't even notice. "I'll take care of picking up that." He pointed at Tony and then the brightly lit KFC next door. "You're in charge of chicken; don't forget you're buying for everyone."
"Right. Say, Boss, did Abby say that she ordered any garlic knots? You can't make a meal out of them, but they'd be great to snack on for the rest of the drive-"
Gibbs came around to Tony's side and practically pinned him against the car door. "Do you think that you're allowed to eat in my car?"
Reflexively Tony glanced at the hood and then back at Gibbs. "No. I didn't - I would...NEVER..."
Gibbs backed up, leaving Tony panting against the car.
"DiNozzo!"
"Moving, Boss! I'm going!"
"Make sure there's some Original Recipe in that order."
Less than ten minutes later, Tony was back at the car a with bucket each of Extra Crispy, Original Recipe and Grilled. There was also a well-rounded assortment of sides, including the coleslaw that Ducky liked, corn on the cob for the boss, and mashed potatoes with double gravy for McGee and Abby. He made a promise to himself to share the potato wedges with Cassie. Really, he would let her have a few.
Tony scrupulously avoided touching any of it, except for the biscuits he had snacked on. But he had been careful to eat them outside the car and fold the box closed so that no one would notice. Hell, they should be happy that Tony didn't eat everything that he had just bought. It was a good thing that he was going to be living with Gibbs, because the team food for dealing with his condition was going to bankrupt him.
"DiNozzo!" Carrying three pizzas, Gibbs came across the parking lot and tossed Tony the car keys.
"You're going to let me drive?" Tony stared at the keys in wonder and then looked at the black and yellow Challenger RT Hemi. Not quite the classic that his beloved and much missed '66 Mustang had been, but the Challenger was the kind of muscle car that deserved respect. Tony knew he was lucky that Gibbs didn't make him ride in the trunk.
"Yeah, and pigs are gonna fly."
Tony blinked, having been brought out of his reverie.
"Open the damn trunk," Gibbs said.
Tony did as he was told and was much relieved when the pizzas were placed inside.
"Is the chicken secure?"
"Down in the foot wells of the so-called back seat; they can't slide around. I also made them double-bag the gravy." Sit-rep. That had been an honest to god sit-rep and Tony felt that he had delivered it well.
Gibbs closed the trunk and turned towards Tony, poking a finger in his chest.
"Wha-?"
"How many?"
"How?" Tony was confused and looked down at Gibbs finger again. There was a tell-tale biscuit crumb on his shirt. "Oh, that. It was just-"
"DiNozzo!"
"Three! Well, four if you count the broken one," Tony confessed.
"You were worried about how focused you could be. We're going to practice. When we get to the house, you let me know when you're hungry, and I'll start a four-minute timer."
"Bu-" Tony started, but he couldn't even get out the full word because Gibbs was staring him down. "I'll consider myself lucky that it wasn't M&Ms." God, if it had been M&Ms he could have eaten hundreds.
Gibbs snatched the keys from his hand. They both headed towards their doors.
"Brush off those crumbs."
Tony somehow managed to stop before his ass hit the seat and lean back out of the car at the weirdest angle ever to wipe the evidence off his chest.
The rest of the ride to Gibbs' place was uneventful until they were almost at the house. It was like an antique car show with Ducky's Morgan and Abby's vintage hot rod parked in front of the house. Tony's own car was parked down the side yard in front of Gibbs' truck. Tim's Boxter and Cassidy's SUV were no doubt somewhere nearby. Although, the neighbors must already be shocked at the idea that Gibbs was having a party. Then he wanted to bang his head on something because he was the guest of honor.
"You sure that chicken isn't going to tip over?"
"Yeah, like I-"
Gibbs must have jammed on the accelerator because they were flying past the last couple of houses. The turn for the driveway came much too early, but it worked out okay because the car slid about 50 meters sideways to line up with it.
Someone inside the car screamed like a two-year-old, and Tony was betting that it wasn't Gibbs. He gripped the dashboard in wide-eyed terror, because the garage was coming up fast, and the door wasn't fully open yet. He ducked, like that was going to do any good. The bottom of the door just cleared the car, and suddenly it was the back wall of the garage that Tony was really worried about. The car stopped.
After he caught his breath, Tony could see that the car was perfectly parked, and Gibbs had a smile on his face as he hit the button on the visor to make the door close. "You were worried about the chicken staining the car? You really should consider the state of the person in the passenger seat if you're gonna park like that!"
"Get yourself changed and ready to go into the basement."
Tony glanced at his watch. 17:40, which meant 33 minutes until the Moonrise. They had all agreed to play it safe, and have everything set by then. Tony got out of the car. "Right, put on clothes that I'm willing to shred. Frankly, I'm so hot now that naked sounds really appealing."
"DiNozzo-"
"Not that I would do that. By the way, Boss, I'm-"
"Make sure you take your temperature when you're upstairs." Gibbs was pulling the pizzas out of the trunk. "You can tell me anything else when you get back downstairs."
Tony let his head fall back and cringed. "Yes, Boss!" he grumbled out.
***
Gibbs followed Tony in with the pizzas, but had to stop when Abby wrapped herself around Tony, bags and all, in the doorway.
"Abby," Tony grunted. "Chicken!"
She apologized and grabbed some of his bags. Gibbs was able to put his own down before he was assaulted by Abby's hug. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tony look wistfully at the food before heading out of the kitchen.
"Hey, Abby. I need a sit-rep," Gibbs said.
She let go and snapped to some semblance of attention, saluted, and began speaking in a low, rough voice. "Special Agent and Super Geek McGee is in the basement arranging the surveillance equipment. The awesome Doctor and Duckman Mallard -
"Don't le him hear you calling him that." Gibbs adjusted Abby's saluting hand so it was actually straight and in the right position. He gave up when she tilted her head so she could watch him.
"Has set out a variety of lab testing equipment." Abby stopped and leaned her head towards Gibbs without moving her saluting hand. She whispered, "Cassie's AWOL."
Gibbs leaned towards her. "She's on a special mission." He placed his hand on either side of her face and kissed her forehead before looking around the kitchen. In general, he hated the kitchen, but it was somehow looking better with every flat surface covered with some kind of bag containing food. There was an extra coffee maker set up next to his own. Someone was thinking.
"Do you think we have enough, Gibbs?" Abby asked.
"Enough to feed my old Marine platoon for a week, but maybe DiNozzo for an hour."
"Speaking of feeding DiNozzo, I'm hungry, Boss!" Tony stuck his head into the kitchen.
"What are you doing out there, Tony? It's not like Gibbs is going to starve you," Abby said.
Choosing to disregard the glare that Tony was giving him, Gibbs looked at his watch.
Tony stepped into the kitchen, but seemed to deliberately be keeping his distance from the food. He was dressed in some old work out clothes with holes and frayed edges.
"I'm sure he will, Abby, because he is a man that keeps his promises," Tony said
The look he was getting now was much more to Gibbs' liking. "In four minutes."
Abby was looking between the two of them. "Okay then, you roomies-"
"Housemates," Tony snapped.
"Landlord, lessee," Gibbs corrected
"Yeah, you two are deeply weird - weirder than usual. It's almost time, and I need Tony downstairs to do some prep work before-" Abby had poked Tony in the chest and was hesitating and obviously holding back a lot of emotion. Tony was biting his lip and holding his breath.
"Tony, you can grab some food and take it down with you," Gibbs said, breaking the tension.
Tony's eyes opened wide as he dived for the food.
"Hey! There's still a four-minute penalty in play! Not even a ketchup packet until you're in your space."
***
Gibbs spun the handle on the vice, clamping the lawnmower blade in place. In a way, he missed the boat. Everyone had been used to the boat - he had been used to having a boat. He had materials for his next project, but didn't want to deal with the inevitable questions. This was supposed to be his sanctuary, not an interrogation room. Sharpening the lawn mower blade was simple. Better to have something straightforward to occupy him tonight.
"Jethro, how are you holding up?" Ducky asked.
"Me?" Gibbs shrugged. "I don't think I'm the one we should be worrying about."
"Yes, but this is quite a bit of activity for your home-"
"Ya think?" Gibbs realized that it came out too harshly.
"And you are accustomed to your solitude," Ducky finished.
Gibbs hadn't lied to Tony; he did get more visitors in the basement than anyone could reasonably expect. It was how he vetted friends and girlfriends alike. Tonight was different, much more like the time that the FBI was investigating Jenny and her involvement in the Frog's death. His house, his team working through the latest crisis like they tackled any other tough case. The problem was Gibbs wasn't used to quite this much close contact with them, at least not as a group.
The murmured voices and periodic laughter of Tony and Abby were coming from the secret room. The lone TV had sprouted computers and Gibbs could see them on one of the monitors. McGee was in front of the electronics, diligently adjusting and typing. He might have been playing computer games too for all Gibbs knew, but he wasn't worried. McGee was going to be their bedrock in this operation. He wasn't going to hesitate to call reality into question and would be the first one to yank in their tethers if any of them wondered too far off track.
Moonrise had passed and now they were waiting for the next milestone - astronomical twilight. Two hours was a lot of time to kill.
"I'll be fine, Ducky," Gibbs said. This activity wasn't like having his dates over or having cryptic meetings with agenda-bearing agents. As much as he wanted it to be, it wasn't like having Shannon and Kelly either. "Maybe it's time for less solitude in this place."
Gibbs pretended not to notice Ducky's raised eyebrows, as he stood and walked over to McGee and his electronic warehouse. "My grandfather used to have a HAM radio with all kinds of wires hanging off; all you need is a few bakelite knobs. He used to call a senorita in Columbia."
McGee smiled at him. "And you claim you don't understand IMing. Actually, amateur radio operators contributed to the groundwork of the TCP/IP protocol, which underlies the entire structure of the World Wide Web." McGee paused for a breath and looked at Gibbs. Gibbs looked back. "And you don't actually care about that. I could get some cable ties and neaten this set up a bit."
"It was called small talk, McGee," Gibbs said, but gave McGee a clap on the shoulder to let him know that he wasn't annoyed. "Are we ready for anything?"
McGee glanced up and then went back to his keyboard. "Pretty much, Boss. The cage is locked and the cameras are good to go. Cassie called and is on her way. Abby and Tony are just finishing some more prep work. We're good."
Gibbs looked at the monitor and saw Tony lying on the floor of the locked cage. He looked comfortable despite the fact that the cement floor must be icy. His foot was poking through the bars and resting in Abby's lap on the other side. Gibbs squinted. "McGee, is she painting his toes?"
"Ah, yes," Ducky said, joining him. "When the claws fell off last time, Tony had a complete set of human finger and toenails. We're not sure if the claws grew over them or if he grew new ones when the claws fell out. By using the nail polish-"
"I get it, Duck. It's just one more disturbing piece of reality. Time check."
McGee sat up and hit a key displaying various clocks. "It is 20:09. Moonrise was at 18:13, no reaction from Tony. We have passed civilian twilight and heading towards astronomical twilight at 20:16. I have a camera pointed out one of the east windows, so we can judge the position of the moon." McGee hit a few keys and the screen split, showing Tony and Abby on one side and the neighbor's yard on the other.
"Good work, Tim."
"Did I miss anything?" Cassie asked as she came down the stairs, carrying two shopping bags.
"Tony and Abby are painting each other's nails," Gibbs said.
Cassie smiled, but didn't even blink as she put down the bags. "I have goodies. One bite-resistant sleeve."
Gibbs took the item and looked it over. "I've got an idea for this."
"I hope it doesn't involve you getting too close to Tony's teeth," Ducky said.
"The surprise item for the evening is a tranquilizer gun and darts."
Ducky took the box of darts and a small vial that Cassie held. "Excellent. I'll have to do some quick research on the proper dosage."
"How traceable is that?" Gibbs asked.
"It's an air gun, so no serial numbers or registration. I bought it from a pawnshop with cash. The darts are clean too. The tranquilizer was tougher."
"Indeed, one usually needs a prescription from a vet," Ducky said.
Cassie nodded. "I have a friend who owns a dairy farm. Sometimes they have issues with the bulls. I convinced him that I had a friend with a big woodchuck problem."
"Woodchuck? They're kind of small compared to Tony," McGee said.
"Small, but you've got to dig fences down two feet to keep them out of your vegetable garden. If they get in, they'll eat everything in sight," Gibbs said.
"That sounds like Tony," McGee said.
"My friend had complete sympathy and didn't mind the idea of a few woodchucks maybe having a little overdose. But we won't be able to get more from that source without raising an eyebrow," Cassie said.
Gibbs nodded, "Hopefully we won't need it. What else do you have in that bag?"
She reached in and pulled out a bakery box. "New York style cheesecake. I figured it might help Tony keep up his spirits." Peels of laughter came out of the cell room from both Tony and Abby. "Or maybe we'll use it to keep up our strength," Cassie said as she frowned at the monitor. "Tell me that pile of plates, bones, and pizza crusts was the entire group and not just Tony and Abby."
"It wasn't just Tony and Abby," McGee said. "It was just Tony. I hope you weren't counting on Extra Crispy Chicken or potato wedges."
Tony's laughter turned into a groan, immediately followed by another.
"It's 20:14," McGee said.
Gibbs was already at the door when McGee called the time. Tony rolled on the cement floor, alternately clutching his gut and scratching at his arm. Abby squawked as McGee took her hands and slid her back from the bars.
"Tony, if you can, I want to try and get a cheek swab and a saliva sample," Ducky said. He was gloved up and ready with his specimen containers.
"Sure, why don't I pee in a cup while I'm at it," Tony moaned. He pulled himself to his feet, yanked off his shirt, and crashed against the bars.
Gibbs took a step closer to Tony and Ducky.
"Spit. And again." Ducky passed the cup back to Abby who had pulled on gloves of her own. "All right, open wide."
Tony grimaced but did as he was told. Just as Ducky put the swab in Tony's mouth, everything went into slow motion for Gibbs. It was like Tony's jaw unhinged, allowing full view of the inside of his mouth. Gibbs could see his teeth elongating, pushing out. It was almost like the points of new incisors broke out of the existing teeth from the inside, shattering them. Hair sprouted from the hand gripping the bars. Razors sharp nails slid out of the ends of Tony's fingers, like a cat extending its claws.
Gibbs grabbed Ducky by the arm and collar and pulled him back just as Tony's jaws clamped shut and a clawed hand shot through the bars.
"Cassie, spray paint!" Gibbs called out and put his own body between Ducky and the cage. "Did he get you, Duck?"
Ducky was staring in shock at the swab still in his hand or maybe he was staring in wonder because his hand was still attached. Then he looked at Gibbs and let out a breath. "No, not a scratch. I'm not sure that I can rule out a coronary episode, however." Ducky took a ragged breath and looked past Gibbs' arm. Then shouted, "Abby! Do you have- Ah yes." Ducky moved to the back of the room to help Abby with the samples.
"McGee, sit-rep!" Gibbs turned to watch what Tony had become. There were tatters of clothes on the floor of the cell as Tony raked his own body with his new claws. Either he was being gentle or his skin had gotten tougher because there was no blood.
"Transformation began at 20:14, complete at 20:17, one minute after astronomical twilight. I'll have to calculate the angle of the moon and the visibility from this location. These events are spaced so closely that we may not know for a few cycles the exact set of triggers."
Several cycles? Gibbs didn't know if any of them were up for that. Tony slammed his shoulder against the bars, and reached for McGee who was standing a safe distance back, but flinched none-the-less.
"Here you go, Gibbs." Cassie handed him a can of spray paint. "I hope lawn furniture green was what you were after."
"Wave at him, McGee," Gibbs said
McGee raised an eyebrow, but did as he was told. Tony lunged again, his arm fully extended, the claw leading the way. His shoulder jammed into the bars. Gibbs sprayed the floor about six inches further than Tony's reach through the cage bars. "Cassie."
"Hey, Tony!" She waved both hands. Tony made a pained noise and lunged to the other side of the cage, snapping at the bars. Cassie waved until Tony reached for her. After Gibbs marked the floor, he used the can to draw a line across the room.
"We all understand that beyond this line is a danger zone, right?"
There were nods and murmured acknowledgements. Tony was prowling the entire cell, throwing himself at the walls and bars. Gibbs wanted to do something, but this was one situation that he didn't know where to begin.
"It wasn't a nightmare," Abby whispered, next to him.
"It is, Abby. It is."
Continued here
***
Errata: Somewhere in Part 2, I mistakenly referred to Abby's car as a hearse. It is actually a lovingly restored 1931 Ford Coupe hot rod. Sorry.
Author:
justhumanWritten for:
spoonyrifficPrompt: Tony/Gibbs - Supernatural (the genre, not the show) - a series of strange killings in DC leave our favorite NCIS team puzzled, and soon it is revealed that there is something more nefarious behind it all. First Time fic. Rating between R or NC-17, whichever is best for the fic.
Archive: Please ask
Genre: teamfic, adventure, romance
Pairings: Gibbs/DiNozzo, mentions of canon pairings and maybe a surprise
Rating: NC-17 overall, PG this section
Disclaimer: CBS
Word Count: 6425, this part
Summary: While working a case, Tony runs into a problem with potentially deadly consequences. Now it's up to the team to do what they do best and investigate until they find a solution.
A/N: Many thanks to
luvinmike and tejas for the beta assistance in this part. As always, all mistakes are mine.Part 1 - Harvest Moon
Part 2 - After the Harvest Moon
Part 3 - Hunter's Moon
***Saturday, October 3, 2009 Full Moon, Day 1, Waxing Gibbous
On autopilot, Gibbs went to the kitchen and waited for the coffee maker to finish brewing his first cup. Caffeine in hand, he showered and dressed. Like he did every morning, Gibbs contemplated the best location to add a cup holder to the shower and wondered why he didn't get a second coffee maker just for the bedroom.
Once he was ready for work, Gibbs headed down the hall and pushed open the door to the small guest room. The blankets were kicked off the bed, and Tony was starfished across the mattress on his belly, in nothing but his skivvies. Gibbs felt a little rush go through his body that usually took a sassy red head to generate. He wasn't usually interested in guys, but he'd be lying if he said that it had never happened before.
In high school, Gibbs hadn't understood what he was feeling, but knew exactly what people would think. His father would probably say that it had added to the chip that had been on his shoulder. He never gave a thought to how the situation might have gotten worse, living in close quarters with a platoon of Marines. He was fortunate on all accounts that Shannon had come into his life. Thoughts of her had dissolved away any passing desires, male or female.
Sometimes Tony tempted him, which only seemed fair because Tony worked so hard at tempting everyone. One day Tim would figure it out and no doubt deck him. But indulging those feelings, that would be a multi-level disaster for both Gibbs and Tony. Still, it didn't hurt to look sometimes. That was Gibbs' story, and he was going to stick with it, because it was going to be the only way to survive the DiNozzo occupation.
In stark contrast to the energy that Tony had had the night before, in sleep his face was peaceful and his breathing easy. Gibbs knew that he hadn't seen that in over a month. And damn him, but he missed Tony's smile.
Gibbs needed a little space and a second cup of coffee. "DiNozzo!"
Tony jumped a little and snuggled a pillow. "Right here, Boss, I'll have those reports in a minute. Getting my ass into gear. I'll get McGee. McGee!"
At least Gibbs was going to get some entertainment out of Tony moving in. "Not at the office yet, DiNozzo."
Tony jumped a little, squinting open his eyes and then frowning deeply. "Wait - It's Saturday!"
"We're the on-call team today. Not enough notice to get us out of it this month."
Tony looked over his shoulder, like he was trying to make out who Gibbs was. "This sucks, worse than Mondays. I'll be ready in twenty minutes, Boss."
"Make it ten," Gibbs said and then turned to walk downstairs.
"But I gotta shower or nobody's gonna be happy today," Tony whined. Gibbs smiled as he listened to the complaints over his shoulder until it ended with, "Why's it so hot in here?"
Turning around, Gibbs headed back up and intercepted Tony before he stepped into the bathroom. He put his hand on Tony's forehead and then the back of his neck. "I keep the thermostat below 65."
"My mom used to kiss my forehead to find out if I had a fever," Tony said. Gibbs smacked him lightly on the back of the head. "Somehow that doesn't seem as effective, Boss."
"Sit." Gibbs pointed at the toilet and opened the medicine cabinet. It was already half-full of a dizzying assortment of Tony's stuff, but he spotted the thermometer. He gave it a quick rinse, shook it down, and then stuck it in Tony's mouth. "Under the tongue."
"Boss, you don't have to do this," Tony mumbled around the glass.
"We can do this the easy way or the hard way, DiNozzo. Is it under your tongue, or do I have to look for another appropriate orifice?"
Tony clamped his mouth closed and shook his head. The quiet lasted about thirty seconds.
"Boss, Ducky said I had a fever yesterday. Probably still there."
"Yeah? How come I didn't get that info in a sit-rep? What did Ducky tell you to do?"
"Monitor it," Tony mumbled.
Gibbs leaned down. "And did you? Did you check your temperature last night?"
Tony looked wide-eyed and guilty - not guilty in that he-was-sorry-he-messed-up way, but in the sorry-he-got-caught-way.
Gibbs pulled the thermometer out of his mouth and turned it to read it. Then he turned it again, holding it out a little further away.
"Here, Boss." Tony held out his hand, obviously putting it together that Gibbs couldn't make it out.
Sighing in frustration, Gibbs handed it to him.
"One oh two point five," Tony said and stood up. "Look, I can't... I can't dwell on every detail like Abby and McGee. I'm already half-crazy and fixating on my rapid decline isn't helping. Let me get into the shower, and I'll be ready in ten." He turned towards the tub and fiddled with the water.
Gibbs slipped the thermometer back into its case and put it on the sink. Heading downstairs, he fought the urge to go back upstairs and try to knock some sense into Tony, but there was no sense to be had in any of it.
***
Tony knew he was going to have to put the nix on the carpooling thing right away. It wasn't like he had a delicate tummy, but he needed to be more awake or to have a substantial breakfast before he was ready to face a Gibbs' roller coaster ride. He had to admit that the Challenger had some serious performance. Since it was Saturday, there was a lot of room on the road to test it out, and Gibbs wasn't wasting the opportunity.
The privacy of his own car and the routine of driving on his own would have been nice. There was something Zen about a gentle cruise down the highway. According to Gibbs, one wasn't supposed to drive with a hundred and two degree fever. Who knew? Well, technically Tony did because it had only taken one hundred and one to lay him out when he had Valley Fever. The thing was that today Tony felt completely fine, if only a little hot. He was good, ready for the day - just a little hungry.
The one fortunate thing about getting a ride to work with Gibbs was that it involved a boss-approved stop for coffee. You couldn't be late if your stop involved getting Gibbs coffee. Tony figured Gibbs must have been on his sixth or seventh cup, but Gibbs claimed that it was only his fourth. Some decent coffee was on Tony's list - better than the evil sludge that came out of Gibbs' machine - but what Tony really needed was breakfast.
Everything behind the counter was looking really good. He added a bear claw to his bacon and egg on a roll. Then he immediately struck that and doubled up on both items, hoping it would be enough to tide him over until lunch.
Gibbs eyed his bag, and instinctively Tony held it closer to his chest.
"Did you order for the whole team, DiNozzo?"
Tony looked at his bag, looked at Gibbs and then smiled at the woman at the cash register. "Add on half a dozen croissants." Out of the corner of his eye, Tony could see Gibbs rolling his eyes, but Tony had more important things on his mind. Half a dozen would only mean one for him. He cleared his throat. "Make that a dozen."
***
Breakfast had been good for about ten minutes and then Tony wanted more. He hit the snack machine on his way back from his morning meeting with Ducky's thermometer and blood pressure cuff. Ducky wasn't even scheduled to be in, but he made the special trip for Tony. And a special visit it was, because it involved giving other kinds of samples and cheek swabs.
Saturday was always a potluck when it came to activity. You either had a major assault and no handy back up, or nothing but paperwork. Paperwork never went away. It was omnipresent, boring as hell, and doubly so on a Saturday.
Tony didn't have to worry about it much, because Gibbs kept sending him on errands - random, probie-type errands. It didn't seem fair that he was schlepping around doing things McGee should be doing. A lot of the errands involved dropping things off at empty desks, because it was Saturday.
Because he had been going stir crazy at his desk, Tony was glad to have a chance to walk around. On the outside he was cool and collected, but his brain was like a pinball machine, bouncing around all the crap in his life. He was strapped for cash because of the debt he owed his bastard cousin, forced to move into Dad's spare room, and shaking apart because he was on the verge of becoming a werewolf.
On one trip back from Legal, Tony stopped in the middle of the hall and wondered what the hell he was supposed to do. Yeah, there were days he was extra-hungry or extra-wired, but this was something else. The elevator dinged and he just stared inside at the lone occupant, Jim Rider from Communications. There was nothing interesting about Rider or the elevator.
"Earth to DiNozzo! I know we're all taking it a little easy because it's Saturday, but I'd rather not be here on Sunday. Are you getting in?" Rider asked.
"Yeah. No, I think I'm going to take the stairs." And Tony did, all the way to the top floor and back to the subbasement, finally returning to the squad room floor.
***
"DiNozzo!" Gibbs shouted at him, and Tony froze and wondered what the hell he had been doing this time that was driving everyone up a wall. During an earlier boss explosion, he found out that he wasn't as relaxed as he had originally thought. Why the hell hadn't they got a case? Then they could be out in the field, doing things instead of -
"If you don't stop that drumming and thumping, I'm going to drum you through a wall."
Right, restless tapping, again. "I'll stop, Boss. I promise," Tony said and really wished that he could believe it. There was no time to worry about that though because when he looked over, he saw that Cassie was gone. She was there the last time he had looked, and he was an attentive guy, so he shouldn't have missed her getting up. "Where'd Cassie go?"
Gibbs and McGee were both staring at him.
"Tony, we had that conversation at your desk. Cassie went to Norfolk to drop off some important paperwork and then take care of a personal errand," McGee said.
Tony mouthed personal errand because it sounded significant, a clue being dropped, something they apparently thought he should know something about it.
Gibbs tossed his pen on his desk and got up. "You two downstairs; we're going to some unarmed combat drills."
Stuff, doing stuff! Tony shot up and smiled at McGee, who was looking longingly at his computer screen.
"McGee, come on, the gym," Tony said it like they were heading to Disney World.
Now McGee was frowning at him in that geek way that said, I like my computer better.
"DiNozzo!"
"Yeah, Boss."
"The stairs - do a couple of laps before you hit the gym."
Tony experienced a moment of shock. The coach was sending him for laps already? Then there was a wash of relief because the last place he wanted to be was trapped in a confined space like an elevator, let alone one where Gibbs controlled the stop button. He bolted for the stairs.
Tony went up and down three times before he swung into the locker room and got into his workout clothes as fast as he could. Gibbs and McGee were already in the gym with Ducky. He got that sinking feeling again.
"Ducky, you're not dressed to work out, and you're supposed to be visiting your mother, mom, ma, mum?" Tony said and wondered if Ducky did call her mum.
"No, I'm not here to work out and I have visited Mother. I am told that you are more than ready for a workout, though. I was just hoping to interrupt for a moment to see if anything has changed since this morning."
Tony scratched at the back of his neck as an excuse not to glare at Gibbs and McGee. He wondered which one of them had called. He had a sinking feeling that both of them had. Was he that out of it? Finally he stepped in close to the group of men.
"Look, I know that I'm starting to behave like something out of a science fiction movie, which is bad enough without becoming someone's lab experiment." There, he said it.
"Tony, we're trying to help you," McGee said.
Ducky nodded. "Yes, but I can understand that it might not feel that way to Tony."
"Is anything you'd test now going to stop whatever is going to happen tonight?" Tony asked and regretted it. Saying it out loud made it more real. He knew the answer and was just hoping he'd be surprised
"Well, it's not just about tonight," Ducky started, trying to spin a situation into a better light, except that it wasn't a situation that could be spun.
"It's about characterizing what's going on so that maybe we can stop it from happening tomorrow night," McGee said.
Tony shoved his fingers through his hair. "You're making it sound like I can think past dinner time. Hell, you're making it sound like I know what's going to happen five minutes from now."
"McGee," Gibbs said. "Go hold the bag for a while. Tony, let out some of that energy."
Tony was more than happy to do that. He noticed that Gibbs held back with Ducky and was giving him the shushing motions. McGee grabbed the bag, looking like he was preparing for Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Terminator edition.
"Hey, Tony, we really are trying to help," McGee said.
"I know," Tony said and cocked his head.
"Jethro, I know that he's on edge, who could blame him, but we're not going to get anywhere without his cooperation."
"I know, Duck, I know. Let him work some of the energy off, and we'll see if you can't get some tests in before we leave. Is Abby downstairs?"
"Yes, she's running the samples that we took over the last few days. I can't explain everything, but things are definitely happening. We need more data."
"I know, but he may just have to get through tonight. It's been a month and the reality of the situation-"
"Isn't clear to any of us, Jethro," Ducky said. "None of us have seen what an entire cycle looks like."
"Ducky says I still have to take more tests," Tony said and slammed his fist into the bag.
"He did?" Tim said with a frown. "I mean, he probably does, but maybe they can wait."
Tony's fist hit the bag again and then shrugged his shoulder in Ducky's direction. "He said it, just now. I thought I was the one with short attention span this afternoon." Tony danced and hit the bag again.
"I didn't hear that, Tony. They're on the other side of the room."
"Yeah, but..." Tony was waving his arm randomly and then saw the look in McGee's eyes. "But you didn't hear it." Tony hit the bag again, hard.
"Tony," McGee said. It was kind of pleading and demanding all at the same time.
After a one-two combination, Tony stopped and turned towards Gibbs and Ducky. "New symptom, super hearing. I don't suppose we can hope that bullets will start bouncing off of me?"
***
Tony stared out the front window of the car until Gibbs pulled through the main gate of the Navy Yard and rocketed down the side street. It was only 16:30, but Gibbs had let them all go, because being late tonight was out of the question.
"Boss?"
"What?"
"This is insane. I'm in a whole other class of damaged goods right now, and in a little while I'm going to be downright dangerous."
Gibbs turned a sharp corner. "So?"
"So? So what does that mean, Boss? It means that I could kill someone for starters. It took a while for it to sink in, but I was a little distracted today."
Gibbs shot him a look.
"See! And I deserved that and every look McGee and Ducky gave me today. How the hell can you trust me to back you up? Hell, I wouldn't trust me to back me up right now."
"Down!" Gibbs swung the wheel hard. Before the turn was done, Tony had popped the buckle on his seat belt and slid down. While reaching for his weapon, he tried to see if there was anything in the side view mirror.
"What do we have?" Tony shouted.
"A highly trained special agent that can focus when he needs to," Gibbs said and continued to drive at a sedate pace - sedate by Gibbs' standards.
Tony looked at him. Then he caught up with the situation. He sat up in his seat. "Boss-"
"Don't Boss me, DiNozzo! You're scared, plain and simple. Nobody blames you for that, because tonight isn't going to be a walk in the park. Today, you reached new levels of distracted and distracting, even for you. But I've been telling people for years that you're good, and you just proved that you are."
Some tiny part of Tony's brain was protesting because that was the most left-handed of left-handed compliments, but the wash of feel-good feelings pushed it right out. "You tell people that I'm good - that I'm good at my job? Well, I am good, and of course, I know that you know that, but frankly, Boss, you're not known for being generous with your compliments."
Gibbs didn't have to say anything for Tony to know that Gibbs thought he was an idiot. It was written all over his expression.
"I'm shutting up, now," Tony said, and Gibbs responded by swinging into the parking lot of a pizza place.
Gibbs opened the door, talking as he got out. "Abby called in a pizza order."
Tony scrambled to get out of the car. Gibbs continued, like he didn't even notice. "I'll take care of picking up that." He pointed at Tony and then the brightly lit KFC next door. "You're in charge of chicken; don't forget you're buying for everyone."
"Right. Say, Boss, did Abby say that she ordered any garlic knots? You can't make a meal out of them, but they'd be great to snack on for the rest of the drive-"
Gibbs came around to Tony's side and practically pinned him against the car door. "Do you think that you're allowed to eat in my car?"
Reflexively Tony glanced at the hood and then back at Gibbs. "No. I didn't - I would...NEVER..."
Gibbs backed up, leaving Tony panting against the car.
"DiNozzo!"
"Moving, Boss! I'm going!"
"Make sure there's some Original Recipe in that order."
Less than ten minutes later, Tony was back at the car a with bucket each of Extra Crispy, Original Recipe and Grilled. There was also a well-rounded assortment of sides, including the coleslaw that Ducky liked, corn on the cob for the boss, and mashed potatoes with double gravy for McGee and Abby. He made a promise to himself to share the potato wedges with Cassie. Really, he would let her have a few.
Tony scrupulously avoided touching any of it, except for the biscuits he had snacked on. But he had been careful to eat them outside the car and fold the box closed so that no one would notice. Hell, they should be happy that Tony didn't eat everything that he had just bought. It was a good thing that he was going to be living with Gibbs, because the team food for dealing with his condition was going to bankrupt him.
"DiNozzo!" Carrying three pizzas, Gibbs came across the parking lot and tossed Tony the car keys.
"You're going to let me drive?" Tony stared at the keys in wonder and then looked at the black and yellow Challenger RT Hemi. Not quite the classic that his beloved and much missed '66 Mustang had been, but the Challenger was the kind of muscle car that deserved respect. Tony knew he was lucky that Gibbs didn't make him ride in the trunk.
"Yeah, and pigs are gonna fly."
Tony blinked, having been brought out of his reverie.
"Open the damn trunk," Gibbs said.
Tony did as he was told and was much relieved when the pizzas were placed inside.
"Is the chicken secure?"
"Down in the foot wells of the so-called back seat; they can't slide around. I also made them double-bag the gravy." Sit-rep. That had been an honest to god sit-rep and Tony felt that he had delivered it well.
Gibbs closed the trunk and turned towards Tony, poking a finger in his chest.
"Wha-?"
"How many?"
"How?" Tony was confused and looked down at Gibbs finger again. There was a tell-tale biscuit crumb on his shirt. "Oh, that. It was just-"
"DiNozzo!"
"Three! Well, four if you count the broken one," Tony confessed.
"You were worried about how focused you could be. We're going to practice. When we get to the house, you let me know when you're hungry, and I'll start a four-minute timer."
"Bu-" Tony started, but he couldn't even get out the full word because Gibbs was staring him down. "I'll consider myself lucky that it wasn't M&Ms." God, if it had been M&Ms he could have eaten hundreds.
Gibbs snatched the keys from his hand. They both headed towards their doors.
"Brush off those crumbs."
Tony somehow managed to stop before his ass hit the seat and lean back out of the car at the weirdest angle ever to wipe the evidence off his chest.
The rest of the ride to Gibbs' place was uneventful until they were almost at the house. It was like an antique car show with Ducky's Morgan and Abby's vintage hot rod parked in front of the house. Tony's own car was parked down the side yard in front of Gibbs' truck. Tim's Boxter and Cassidy's SUV were no doubt somewhere nearby. Although, the neighbors must already be shocked at the idea that Gibbs was having a party. Then he wanted to bang his head on something because he was the guest of honor.
"You sure that chicken isn't going to tip over?"
"Yeah, like I-"
Gibbs must have jammed on the accelerator because they were flying past the last couple of houses. The turn for the driveway came much too early, but it worked out okay because the car slid about 50 meters sideways to line up with it.
Someone inside the car screamed like a two-year-old, and Tony was betting that it wasn't Gibbs. He gripped the dashboard in wide-eyed terror, because the garage was coming up fast, and the door wasn't fully open yet. He ducked, like that was going to do any good. The bottom of the door just cleared the car, and suddenly it was the back wall of the garage that Tony was really worried about. The car stopped.
After he caught his breath, Tony could see that the car was perfectly parked, and Gibbs had a smile on his face as he hit the button on the visor to make the door close. "You were worried about the chicken staining the car? You really should consider the state of the person in the passenger seat if you're gonna park like that!"
"Get yourself changed and ready to go into the basement."
Tony glanced at his watch. 17:40, which meant 33 minutes until the Moonrise. They had all agreed to play it safe, and have everything set by then. Tony got out of the car. "Right, put on clothes that I'm willing to shred. Frankly, I'm so hot now that naked sounds really appealing."
"DiNozzo-"
"Not that I would do that. By the way, Boss, I'm-"
"Make sure you take your temperature when you're upstairs." Gibbs was pulling the pizzas out of the trunk. "You can tell me anything else when you get back downstairs."
Tony let his head fall back and cringed. "Yes, Boss!" he grumbled out.
***
Gibbs followed Tony in with the pizzas, but had to stop when Abby wrapped herself around Tony, bags and all, in the doorway.
"Abby," Tony grunted. "Chicken!"
She apologized and grabbed some of his bags. Gibbs was able to put his own down before he was assaulted by Abby's hug. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Tony look wistfully at the food before heading out of the kitchen.
"Hey, Abby. I need a sit-rep," Gibbs said.
She let go and snapped to some semblance of attention, saluted, and began speaking in a low, rough voice. "Special Agent and Super Geek McGee is in the basement arranging the surveillance equipment. The awesome Doctor and Duckman Mallard -
"Don't le him hear you calling him that." Gibbs adjusted Abby's saluting hand so it was actually straight and in the right position. He gave up when she tilted her head so she could watch him.
"Has set out a variety of lab testing equipment." Abby stopped and leaned her head towards Gibbs without moving her saluting hand. She whispered, "Cassie's AWOL."
Gibbs leaned towards her. "She's on a special mission." He placed his hand on either side of her face and kissed her forehead before looking around the kitchen. In general, he hated the kitchen, but it was somehow looking better with every flat surface covered with some kind of bag containing food. There was an extra coffee maker set up next to his own. Someone was thinking.
"Do you think we have enough, Gibbs?" Abby asked.
"Enough to feed my old Marine platoon for a week, but maybe DiNozzo for an hour."
"Speaking of feeding DiNozzo, I'm hungry, Boss!" Tony stuck his head into the kitchen.
"What are you doing out there, Tony? It's not like Gibbs is going to starve you," Abby said.
Choosing to disregard the glare that Tony was giving him, Gibbs looked at his watch.
Tony stepped into the kitchen, but seemed to deliberately be keeping his distance from the food. He was dressed in some old work out clothes with holes and frayed edges.
"I'm sure he will, Abby, because he is a man that keeps his promises," Tony said
The look he was getting now was much more to Gibbs' liking. "In four minutes."
Abby was looking between the two of them. "Okay then, you roomies-"
"Housemates," Tony snapped.
"Landlord, lessee," Gibbs corrected
"Yeah, you two are deeply weird - weirder than usual. It's almost time, and I need Tony downstairs to do some prep work before-" Abby had poked Tony in the chest and was hesitating and obviously holding back a lot of emotion. Tony was biting his lip and holding his breath.
"Tony, you can grab some food and take it down with you," Gibbs said, breaking the tension.
Tony's eyes opened wide as he dived for the food.
"Hey! There's still a four-minute penalty in play! Not even a ketchup packet until you're in your space."
***
Gibbs spun the handle on the vice, clamping the lawnmower blade in place. In a way, he missed the boat. Everyone had been used to the boat - he had been used to having a boat. He had materials for his next project, but didn't want to deal with the inevitable questions. This was supposed to be his sanctuary, not an interrogation room. Sharpening the lawn mower blade was simple. Better to have something straightforward to occupy him tonight.
"Jethro, how are you holding up?" Ducky asked.
"Me?" Gibbs shrugged. "I don't think I'm the one we should be worrying about."
"Yes, but this is quite a bit of activity for your home-"
"Ya think?" Gibbs realized that it came out too harshly.
"And you are accustomed to your solitude," Ducky finished.
Gibbs hadn't lied to Tony; he did get more visitors in the basement than anyone could reasonably expect. It was how he vetted friends and girlfriends alike. Tonight was different, much more like the time that the FBI was investigating Jenny and her involvement in the Frog's death. His house, his team working through the latest crisis like they tackled any other tough case. The problem was Gibbs wasn't used to quite this much close contact with them, at least not as a group.
The murmured voices and periodic laughter of Tony and Abby were coming from the secret room. The lone TV had sprouted computers and Gibbs could see them on one of the monitors. McGee was in front of the electronics, diligently adjusting and typing. He might have been playing computer games too for all Gibbs knew, but he wasn't worried. McGee was going to be their bedrock in this operation. He wasn't going to hesitate to call reality into question and would be the first one to yank in their tethers if any of them wondered too far off track.
Moonrise had passed and now they were waiting for the next milestone - astronomical twilight. Two hours was a lot of time to kill.
"I'll be fine, Ducky," Gibbs said. This activity wasn't like having his dates over or having cryptic meetings with agenda-bearing agents. As much as he wanted it to be, it wasn't like having Shannon and Kelly either. "Maybe it's time for less solitude in this place."
Gibbs pretended not to notice Ducky's raised eyebrows, as he stood and walked over to McGee and his electronic warehouse. "My grandfather used to have a HAM radio with all kinds of wires hanging off; all you need is a few bakelite knobs. He used to call a senorita in Columbia."
McGee smiled at him. "And you claim you don't understand IMing. Actually, amateur radio operators contributed to the groundwork of the TCP/IP protocol, which underlies the entire structure of the World Wide Web." McGee paused for a breath and looked at Gibbs. Gibbs looked back. "And you don't actually care about that. I could get some cable ties and neaten this set up a bit."
"It was called small talk, McGee," Gibbs said, but gave McGee a clap on the shoulder to let him know that he wasn't annoyed. "Are we ready for anything?"
McGee glanced up and then went back to his keyboard. "Pretty much, Boss. The cage is locked and the cameras are good to go. Cassie called and is on her way. Abby and Tony are just finishing some more prep work. We're good."
Gibbs looked at the monitor and saw Tony lying on the floor of the locked cage. He looked comfortable despite the fact that the cement floor must be icy. His foot was poking through the bars and resting in Abby's lap on the other side. Gibbs squinted. "McGee, is she painting his toes?"
"Ah, yes," Ducky said, joining him. "When the claws fell off last time, Tony had a complete set of human finger and toenails. We're not sure if the claws grew over them or if he grew new ones when the claws fell out. By using the nail polish-"
"I get it, Duck. It's just one more disturbing piece of reality. Time check."
McGee sat up and hit a key displaying various clocks. "It is 20:09. Moonrise was at 18:13, no reaction from Tony. We have passed civilian twilight and heading towards astronomical twilight at 20:16. I have a camera pointed out one of the east windows, so we can judge the position of the moon." McGee hit a few keys and the screen split, showing Tony and Abby on one side and the neighbor's yard on the other.
"Good work, Tim."
"Did I miss anything?" Cassie asked as she came down the stairs, carrying two shopping bags.
"Tony and Abby are painting each other's nails," Gibbs said.
Cassie smiled, but didn't even blink as she put down the bags. "I have goodies. One bite-resistant sleeve."
Gibbs took the item and looked it over. "I've got an idea for this."
"I hope it doesn't involve you getting too close to Tony's teeth," Ducky said.
"The surprise item for the evening is a tranquilizer gun and darts."
Ducky took the box of darts and a small vial that Cassie held. "Excellent. I'll have to do some quick research on the proper dosage."
"How traceable is that?" Gibbs asked.
"It's an air gun, so no serial numbers or registration. I bought it from a pawnshop with cash. The darts are clean too. The tranquilizer was tougher."
"Indeed, one usually needs a prescription from a vet," Ducky said.
Cassie nodded. "I have a friend who owns a dairy farm. Sometimes they have issues with the bulls. I convinced him that I had a friend with a big woodchuck problem."
"Woodchuck? They're kind of small compared to Tony," McGee said.
"Small, but you've got to dig fences down two feet to keep them out of your vegetable garden. If they get in, they'll eat everything in sight," Gibbs said.
"That sounds like Tony," McGee said.
"My friend had complete sympathy and didn't mind the idea of a few woodchucks maybe having a little overdose. But we won't be able to get more from that source without raising an eyebrow," Cassie said.
Gibbs nodded, "Hopefully we won't need it. What else do you have in that bag?"
She reached in and pulled out a bakery box. "New York style cheesecake. I figured it might help Tony keep up his spirits." Peels of laughter came out of the cell room from both Tony and Abby. "Or maybe we'll use it to keep up our strength," Cassie said as she frowned at the monitor. "Tell me that pile of plates, bones, and pizza crusts was the entire group and not just Tony and Abby."
"It wasn't just Tony and Abby," McGee said. "It was just Tony. I hope you weren't counting on Extra Crispy Chicken or potato wedges."
Tony's laughter turned into a groan, immediately followed by another.
"It's 20:14," McGee said.
Gibbs was already at the door when McGee called the time. Tony rolled on the cement floor, alternately clutching his gut and scratching at his arm. Abby squawked as McGee took her hands and slid her back from the bars.
"Tony, if you can, I want to try and get a cheek swab and a saliva sample," Ducky said. He was gloved up and ready with his specimen containers.
"Sure, why don't I pee in a cup while I'm at it," Tony moaned. He pulled himself to his feet, yanked off his shirt, and crashed against the bars.
Gibbs took a step closer to Tony and Ducky.
"Spit. And again." Ducky passed the cup back to Abby who had pulled on gloves of her own. "All right, open wide."
Tony grimaced but did as he was told. Just as Ducky put the swab in Tony's mouth, everything went into slow motion for Gibbs. It was like Tony's jaw unhinged, allowing full view of the inside of his mouth. Gibbs could see his teeth elongating, pushing out. It was almost like the points of new incisors broke out of the existing teeth from the inside, shattering them. Hair sprouted from the hand gripping the bars. Razors sharp nails slid out of the ends of Tony's fingers, like a cat extending its claws.
Gibbs grabbed Ducky by the arm and collar and pulled him back just as Tony's jaws clamped shut and a clawed hand shot through the bars.
"Cassie, spray paint!" Gibbs called out and put his own body between Ducky and the cage. "Did he get you, Duck?"
Ducky was staring in shock at the swab still in his hand or maybe he was staring in wonder because his hand was still attached. Then he looked at Gibbs and let out a breath. "No, not a scratch. I'm not sure that I can rule out a coronary episode, however." Ducky took a ragged breath and looked past Gibbs' arm. Then shouted, "Abby! Do you have- Ah yes." Ducky moved to the back of the room to help Abby with the samples.
"McGee, sit-rep!" Gibbs turned to watch what Tony had become. There were tatters of clothes on the floor of the cell as Tony raked his own body with his new claws. Either he was being gentle or his skin had gotten tougher because there was no blood.
"Transformation began at 20:14, complete at 20:17, one minute after astronomical twilight. I'll have to calculate the angle of the moon and the visibility from this location. These events are spaced so closely that we may not know for a few cycles the exact set of triggers."
Several cycles? Gibbs didn't know if any of them were up for that. Tony slammed his shoulder against the bars, and reached for McGee who was standing a safe distance back, but flinched none-the-less.
"Here you go, Gibbs." Cassie handed him a can of spray paint. "I hope lawn furniture green was what you were after."
"Wave at him, McGee," Gibbs said
McGee raised an eyebrow, but did as he was told. Tony lunged again, his arm fully extended, the claw leading the way. His shoulder jammed into the bars. Gibbs sprayed the floor about six inches further than Tony's reach through the cage bars. "Cassie."
"Hey, Tony!" She waved both hands. Tony made a pained noise and lunged to the other side of the cage, snapping at the bars. Cassie waved until Tony reached for her. After Gibbs marked the floor, he used the can to draw a line across the room.
"We all understand that beyond this line is a danger zone, right?"
There were nods and murmured acknowledgements. Tony was prowling the entire cell, throwing himself at the walls and bars. Gibbs wanted to do something, but this was one situation that he didn't know where to begin.
"It wasn't a nightmare," Abby whispered, next to him.
"It is, Abby. It is."
Continued here
***
Errata: Somewhere in Part 2, I mistakenly referred to Abby's car as a hearse. It is actually a lovingly restored 1931 Ford Coupe hot rod. Sorry.
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no subject
Date: 2009-12-10 01:50 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-10 04:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-10 04:13 am (UTC)Words cannot begin to describe how much I'm loving this. Seriously. I love how detailed you are with everything - with the different twilights, Tony's cravings (which are kind of hilarious), the fact that he's getting super hearing, and just about damn near everything! Everyone is so in character - it's simply amazing. I love Abby's comment that Gibbs and Tony are "deeply weird." They are! *sporfle*
I'm also really loving Cassie. She's the bomb.
This is turning out better than I ever imagined! It's fantastic! I'm so happy. *bg* Can't wait for more!
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Date: 2009-12-10 05:13 am (UTC)I'm so happy that you're enjoying this so much -- and terribly sorry for the long delay between chapters. Live happened a lot in the later part of November/early December.
And yay! Tony are always a win for me, glad you like it too. Happy to hear about Cassie too. I knew where I wanted to set in the timeline and they really needed to fill that seat.
Next part is over 5000 right now, so hopefully another part between Christmas and New Years.
...now if LJ would just catch up on the comment notifications
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Date: 2009-12-10 07:11 am (UTC)No worries about the delay! I totally understand how Life gets in the way. It does it quite often, the bastard.
I'll happily wait for the next chapter. :D
I know what you mean about the notifications - I wonder when LJ will be able to fix that. Here, it says that you posted this at a little after midnight my time... I didn't get it in my email until after 2. *snort*
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Date: 2009-12-10 12:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-10 01:16 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-11 12:25 am (UTC)And you weren't totally wrong about Abby's car. In season 6 they showed the hot rod but earlier in the show (season 1 or 2 I think) she had mentioned a hearse.
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Date: 2009-12-11 04:06 am (UTC)And ah about Abby's car! I didn't think I pulled it out of thin air, but I did actually see it in Dog Tags. It's a hot rod from now on :-D
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Date: 2010-02-12 07:04 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-02 02:41 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-03-01 02:38 am (UTC)Do you have any idea when you'll be able to finish off this fic? It'd be really nice if we could have everything finished off before this year's sign up starts. ;-)
Thank you for all your effort last year!
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Date: 2010-03-01 04:38 am (UTC)I can certainly understand your concern. I'm willing to post in any way that you think is appropriate to keep the comm in order, even if it means posting elsewhere and updated a master list.
What do you think?
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Date: 2010-03-01 04:47 am (UTC)I'm happy for you to keep posting on the comm here (it still is a little while until sign up will open), just mostly wanted an update on where you were up to.
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Date: 2010-04-21 10:36 am (UTC)Brilliant WIP. Where is the rest?
no subject
Date: 2010-05-04 04:11 am (UTC)Next part is here
http://community.livejournal.com/ncis_ficathon/63045.html
Just found this
Date: 2010-06-18 06:35 pm (UTC)It'll be exciting to see where you take this. :)
Re: Just found this
Date: 2010-06-25 02:30 am (UTC)I see that you posted your comment in Part 3, so I wasn't sure if you had seen Part 4
http://community.livejournal.com/ncis_ficathon/63045.html
And I just posted Part 5 a few minutes ago
http://community.livejournal.com/ncis_ficathon/64373.html
Hope you enjoy!