Apple of my Eye 2/3
DiNozzo looked up at the sound of the elevator, then froze as McGee marched the two boys over to stand in front of his desk. The one Tony recognized as Matthew was the first one to speak, encouraged by the hand squeezing his shoulder. "I'm sorry, Agent DiNozzo. It was wrong and irresponsible of me to hurt you like that."
Tony was stunned. "Umm, okay, apology accepted."
The other boy spoke up, it took Tony a minute to remember that his name was Michael. "Agent McGee is making... uh, letting us pull weeds here at the Navy Yard for the next two weekends to pay for the window we broke. He said we have to polish your car, too."
"Really?" Tony looked at his younger partner, who was turning the boys back towards the main elevator. McGee gave him the briefest of nods before walking his young charges back to meet their grandparents and Vance. Tony was still staring at the closed elevator when Gibbs walked through.
"DiNozzo?"
"Boss, those kids... McGee... how did..."
Gibbs just held up the tapes. "Haven't a clue, but I'm looking forward to finding out. You coming?" Tony didn't have to be asked twice.
---NCIS---
The three men leaned forward as the image on the plasma cleared to show the interior of the interrogation room. DiNozzo was visible for just a moment before he stormed out of the small room. The boys were rolling around on the floor, fighting over an apple, just a few seconds later. In Vance's office the agents watched as the door to the interrogation room opened and then slammed shut, as McGee entered the room. Leaning forward, all three men were expecting to hear McGee scold the boys and attempt to break them apart. The loud, high-pitched whistle startled them as much as it did the boys.
"Wow, I didn't know he could do that." Tony rubbed at his ears while Gibbs fumbled with the remote to turn the sound down.
Vance smirked at the matching expression on Tony's and the boys' faces, even as he subtly rubbed his own ear. "I must admit, that was impressive." Gibbs nodded, but was busy watching the screen. Once he'd gotten their attention, McGee picked both boys up by their shirts and put them back in their seats before picking up the apple and setting it on the table as he circled around. Other than the whistle that would have impressed any drill instructor, McGee had been silent as he studied his young charges.
The shock only lasted a minute before they started verbally fighting over the apple, but McGee was ready for them. The moment they started arguing, he slammed his hands onto the table. Gibbs noted with pride that his agent had his hands slightly cupped, to increase the noise from the metal table. It worked, as Matthew, Michael, and Tony all jumped again.
"Enough!" It was a roar worthy of Gibbs, shocking coming from the younger man. While the youngsters stared at him in surprise, McGee picked the apple back up and twisted the stem off as he spoke. "If the other apple was rotten, then you split this one the way siblings are supposed to."
"But..."
On the screen Tim handed them each half of the apple while in the office three men reacted with surprise.
"Wow, wait, how'd he do that?" Tony looked to Gibbs who was already rewinding to tape to get a better look. Even the former sniper had missed Tim cutting the apple perfectly in half.
The third time they watched, all three noses were inches from the screen and the action on the video was playing at the slowest speed. As the apple separated, Gibbs shook his head. "Ziva was talking about how powerful McGee's hands were."
"Powerful? Boss, he tore that apple in half with his bare hands." Tony shook his head even as a grin spread across his face. "It was really cool, though, I didn't know he could do that."
"I didn't know anyone could do that. Your boy's full of surprises, Gibbs." Vance turned his attention back to the action on the screen as Gibbs let the video run past the splitting of the apple. The boys were shocked enough that McGee had a captive audience as he circled around again to stand behind them.
"So, what's the plan, boys? Are you hoping your mom resigns her commission, or maybe your dad? It's too bad, I hear they both fine officers."
Michael was the first to react. "Our parents are the best."
"So what happens when they get called into the CO's office about your little stunt today?"
From their expressions, it was apparent that neither boy had ever considered the news would travel that far. "They're going to be really mad." Matthew looked close to tears. "Are they going to get into trouble?"
"Oh, yeah." Tim leaned in between the two boys, a hand resting on each shoulder. "They're going to be mad and embarrassed and humiliated. Your dad's going to have to stand there and listen as his commander talks about how your lack of control suggests that maybe he's not fit for command. After all, he can't even handle a couple of kids. Your mom's going to hear that she obviously can't balance her family and her career. Every time they go up in front of the promotion board, this little stunt of yours is going to come back up unless you do something about it."
"Like what?" The gears were visibly turning in Michael's head. "I mean, the junior phantom never got in trouble."
Matthew glared at his brother, they weren't supposed to admit they even knew about that. "He never got caught, you dolt."
Tim smiled, but the boys couldn't see his face. "You mean the Navy kid almost twenty years ago that reprogrammed the PA system at China Lake to play Queen's 'We are the Champions' instead of reveille? Or changed the shipment of three pallets of Spam bound for Pensacola to chicken cordon bleu and chocolate mousse? Do you boys know the difference between him and you - besides never getting caught?"
The boys looked at each other before shaking their heads. Tim squeezed the shoulders he was holding as he pulled the boys closer. "He made sure his pranks never hurt anyone or caused any real problems. Even the cordon bleu arrived with paperwork to prove that the vendor had overcharging the Navy for years."
Michael was beginning to understand. "Instead of causing problems, he solved one."
"Then the brass thinks it's funny and you're brilliant. When they waste manpower cleaning up after you, then you're just a punk. So, what are you boys going to do to prove you're more than that?"
As McGee started guiding the boys to the idea of working off the damages, Tony frowned. "How would he have known about the Navy kid? I mean... oh, you've got to be kidding me. McGee?"
Vance grinned at Gibbs. "I'll be damned, did you know?"
"No, but I'm not surprised. Think the boys figured it out, too." Gibbs pointed at the screen where two young faces were staring up at McGee with awe. Curious, Gibbs decided it was high time shared a steak and beer with his least experienced agent, but there were other questions that he wanted answered first. Vance seemed in agreement.
The Director grabbed this phone and waited for his assistant to pick up. "Pamela, we need some apples, a half dozen at least. That's what I said, apples, and as soon as you've brought those to my office, have Agent McGee join us."