Prologue

Even though it was twenty-two hundred, Gibbs was comfortable at his desk. Now that the team was back, they were all trying to settle in. He was spending a lot of time at his desk, watching out for them, but he wouldn't admit it.

Abbs was still in the lab, which had become as much as comfort zone as her coffin. DiNozzo was still at his desk studying reports of cases that had occurred when he'd been afloat, Ziva had brought dinner back with her and was squinting at her computer screen and McGee was typing away, his expression serious.

Only Ducky and Palmer had left at a reasonable hour. Palmer had a night class and Ducky's mother was in failing health. Gibbs ran a hand over the back of his neck, pulling in a deep breath. There was no way he'd leave before his agents did and he was getting concerned about the way they were all settling back in.

DiNozzo's eyes were shadowed and Gibbs noticed his hand shaking sometimes. Ziva seemed hollow, as if the very effort of pretending to be okay after her time back with Mossad was wearing on her. And McGee's head still snapped around whenever anyone said "Boss", his eyes lighting up whenever Vance was near. The team was back together but they weren't the same.

Rationally, Gibbs knew it would take time for the team to gel, but he hadn't expected that he'd be so damned tired. Their separation had worn on him; he couldn't allow himself to become as close with them as he had been. It had been far too easy for Vance to manipulate the situation. And Gibbs had no doubts that Vance had used his team's loyalty. The mole and Langer's deception had only been a piece of the puzzle.

Days like today, Gibbs wondered if he wasn't getting too old for all of this. He looked up wearily as a shadow loomed over his desk suddenly, feeling every one of his forty-eight years.

Abby knew she should be happy. She really should. All of the team, all of her family, was home. McGee was back at his desk instead of running around as the boss of Cyber Crimes. Tony was finally on land and back at NCIS. And Ziva had returned from Israel, safe and moody for reasons she hadn't told Abby about yet.

But something wasn't right. They were all home and back where they were supposed to be — according to Abby — but the bond had been altered, ripped apart and not fixed yet. And the worst part was that Gibbs had separated himself from the rest, especially from her. And she couldn't figure out why.

Waiting down in her lab for something to change, Abby had decided she was going to do something to fix it, to reunite her family. She charged towards the elevator and then made her way to the squad room. Rushing to Gibbs' desk, she said hey to the others as they sat at their desks and stopped in front of Gibbs.

She smiled at him, her pigtails swinging. "Hey, Gibbs!"

"Abby," he said, watching her, wishing he had her energy or spirit. "What's keeping you here so late?" he asked quietly, not reprimanding her, but also staying mildly calm and distant. His stomach let out a quiet growl, but he tried to ignore it, sighing and running a hand over his desk, wiping off an already clean surface.

"You." She answered him simply, straight and to the point, as was her way, but still just a bit vague. "All of you, actually," she added, looking around the bullpen and involving the whole group. "Ever since you guys got split up and then came back together, you all have been acting strange. Like you aren't the same people as when you left. Like you aren't a family. And I know different. You, well, all of us actually, are closer than some families and most of us are closer to each other than our own families. But ever since you guys came home, it's like you were replaced with replicas. Poor, cheap, emotionless replicas. You especially, Gibbs."

Abby looked at him then, knowing that he had been pushing them away for reasons she couldn't even guess. Putting her hand on his desk, she leaned towards him. "I want my family back. I want Ziva and Tony teasing and play fighting and finding ways of irritating each other. I want Tim acting like a complete computer geek and newbie even though he's been here for years, because Tony will make up some weird version of his last name or call him Probie. I want Ducky to come up here and tell long stories that we all have heard a million times, but still listen to anyway because it's Ducky. And I want you, Gibbs, to laugh again, to smile every once in a while. I want you to growl when your team gets a bit out of hand, even though you know you love hearing them. You guys are killing me with your silent stares and your empty conversations. I want you back. I want my family back, Gibbs."

Gibbs just looked at her for a long moment, astounded at her audacity, a little touched by how protective she was. "Abbs..." he started in a warning tone. Next thing Tony'd start blathering about some movie. He had to get out of here before he made things worse.

"Well, I want coffee," he said, standing and striding quickly to the elevator, kissing Abby on the cheek as he passed. He couldn't let them see how emotionally involved he was.

Tony blinked a few times and then got up, coming around to give Abby a hug. "Not trying to be pod Tony, Abby," he said, a bit saddened by the way Gibbs had just left. "It's like he's given up on us," Tony said quietly.

Abby watched Gibbs walk around her, stunned into silence at his dismissal of her. As the elevator doors slid closed, she was only vaguely aware of Tony gathering her up in his arms. On the edges of her hearing, she could tell that Ziva and Tim had gotten up and were coming towards her. Her eyes filled with tears she didn't even try to flick away.

Laying her head on Tony's shoulder, she pulled Ziva in closer before she felt Tim's arms wrap around her from behind. "Why is he being so cold, Tony? What happened that changed him so drastically? He's never been that ... that ... mean." She had no better words for it, for his behavior. It was like he was deliberately trying to push them out of his life.

Hating to see her friend in pain, Ziva brushed her hand over Abby's hair. "I do not believe he was trying to be mean, Abby. I think there is much more going on than we realize. When he is ready, Gibbs will tell us."

Looking Ziva in the eyes, Abby asked, "How can you be so sure? I've never seen him like this."

"He's scared too, Abby," Tony began, though he wasn't sure if he was on or off base here. "He lost the director, then all of us..." Tony paused, looking at McGee, who had filled him in on the basics. "Then one of his team turned out to be a mole and one of the other team members had to shoot him. That's gotta be shaking the Boss up, Abby. Maybe he's just running scared."

Tony sighed into her hair. He'd tried to talk to Gibbs a bit, but he'd gotten nowhere. Neither of them were feelings guys, which made it even harder. "When he was looking for Ari, he got real distant, remember?"

"Yeah, but he hasn't been with me, Tony. He was still ... Gibbs with me. Remember? Remember when Ari shot at me and he came busting in even though the bullets had come flying into my lab and you were shielding me and he ... he was still Gibbs with me. Still protective and caring. Not mean. Never mean with me, Tony."

And that's what scared Abby the most. No matter how bad things got, Gibbs would always turn to her and treat her ... well, special. She couldn't lose Gibbs.

"What has him so scared, Tony?"

"I know he was like that with you back then, Abby. But he's older now and more hardened. With the director dying the way she did..." And the fact that Tony himself was responsible...

"Trusting again. Letting people in. Gibbs isn't like that any more, Abby," Tony added when the others didn't speak.

Worried that Abby might try something drastic, Ziva stepped back and tried think of how to show her that things would go back to normal. "It will work how it always works, Abby. One day at a time, one case at a time. Gibbs will come out of whatever this is. He will be the Gibbs who kisses you on the cheek."

"Who brings you Caf-Pow," Tim offered, following Ziva's train of thought. "He just ... needs some time. He was really close to the director, Abby. And when she died and everyone left ... he was different. You know how different he was. But he'll come back." Confident, he went back to his desk, hopeful that Abby would just ... let it go.

"They're right, Abbs. He just took a hard hit with the director's death and then this thing with Langer betraying the team and NCIS. He'll bounce back. He always does."

"It's different this time, Tony. And I've got to do something about it. I can't let him push us away like that. I just can't." Her course of action would be strange, different, but totally hers. And she may need her friends to help.

"He's the center of us, Tony. It won't work without him," she pleaded, watching Ziva and Tim go back to their desks.

"I know." Abby had hit on what Tony was so worried about. "I'll keep trying to talk to him, Abby. I've tried to talk with him a couple of times. Give me time to work with him..." Tony sighed, tilting her head up and looking into her eyes. "What do you think? Tell me what your plan is, Abbs."

"No, Tony." Determined now on her plan of action, she pushed her hands against Tony's chest and put distance between the two of them. She wouldn't bring the rest in on her flight of fancy, as Gibbs would call it. "No, I don't have a plan." Abby was a terrible liar, but she was stubborn.

Tony arched a brow, knowing she was going to go over to Gibbs' place. "Your funeral," he warned gently. "Gibbs isn't going to want to talk, Abbs. I've been going over there and trying..." He stroked Abby's hair. "Why don't the four of us go out, get a pizza and some beer?" He met Ziva's and then McGee's eyes, giving them an encouraging look.

"He'll talk, Tony. He'll talk to me." Looking over at the other two, she said, "I can't, not when things are like this. But you three go. Please. Have some fun, and damn it, I want the three of you back to your normal selves tomorrow. Got it?" She put on her best Gibbs impression, hoping to at least get a laugh or a smile.

Leaning back in the chair, Ziva promised, "I will be my normal self, Abby. We all will. I suspect even Gibbs will be when you are done with him. But I think I will go home tonight. I have ... a lot to think over." Giving them all a smile, Ziva grabbed her pack and headed out.

"Ziva, wait. Dinner ... on me. Come on, Probie, you're invited too. She's right. We haven't..." Tony shrugged. "A lot has changed. We need to try ... We need to try..."

Tony slipped into the elevator, giving Ziva a penetrating look. "You know it. Something happened to you when we were all apart and I need to know."

Tim gave Abby a hard hug, looking deep into her eyes. They'd given up on being an item a long time ago — he'd always suspected she really had a thing for Gibbs anyhow — but they were closer for all of that. "Bring him back to us, Abbs. It's worse than when he was nice to us."

Giving her one last smile, he followed the others. "Coming, Tony."

Abby watched the elevator close behind her friends and took a deep breath. Walking over to Gibbs' desk, she talked to it like she was talking to its owner. "I'm going to fix this, Gibbs. One way or another." Reaching over, she clicked off his lamp.

~~