"You know, some might call it stalking."

"Some might call it necessary."

"What do you want?"

"To talk?"

"Hmmf, done enough of that already."

"Five minutes Gibbs, that's all I want."

"For now."

"Yeah, it'll do."

"For now?"

"Can you just stop being a pain in the ass for five seconds."

He fixed her with a stare but complied. They stood facing each other in silence until he spoke.

"We use this tactic too you know."

"What tactic is that."

"Sit in silence until the suspect gets too uncomfortable they start blabbing."

"You're not a suspect."

"And you're not interrogating me. Or are you?"

"Intervention is what I think they call it." She'd cast him a wry smile.

"That what this all was?"

"I don't know what you're talking about Gibbs."

"Yeah, sure you don't." Gibbs scoffed.

"Something had to give Gibbs , you know it went too far between the two of you, someone had to do something."

"So I suppose it was your idea?"

"Did it work?" Gibbs sniffed and Grace smiled knowingly before dropping back to her serious expression. "This isn't about that."

"I know."

He had walked out of his most recent counselling session just thirteen minutes in. He had been trying, as much for Tim and the team's sake as his own but the second Kelly and Ziva's names had been mentioned in the same sentence he had refused to take it anymore, especially not from someone how was barely old enough to be out of college let alone deciding his mental state.

"So? It-"

"It's not the same." He cut over before she spoke anymore, without conviction this time.

"You said that, not me. Though you don't seem so sure anymore."

"Damn head shrinkers to thank for that." He shoved his hands into his pockets and nudged at a rock with his toe, Grace smiled at the boyishness of his attitude.

"That's my job."

"She wasn't her." He spoke softer.

"I never said she was."

"I know." He turned to watch Tony as he knelt beside Tali who placed something at the bottom of the tree and he kissed her head. "She wasn't Kelly, but she was Ziva."

Grace smiled in understanding.

"I can't say it surprised me, to be honest I'm surprised you let it go on this long, although I must say, to drag it out so that you only end up with four sessions under your belt after almost two months is pretty impressive. I thought you'd be gone much sooner."

Gibbs cast her a knowing glance and forced himself not to smile.

"You're good Grace Confalone, maybe you do know me better than I know myself."

"Damn right I do, you think I don't know you were just deliberately being an ass too? And its Doctor Grace Confalone to you Popeye."

Gibbs grinned and shook his head.

"So, when's our next session?"

"Whenever you're ready Gibbs." She smiled. "No pressure, not yet anyway, though I highly doubt you're not going to show now."

"I suppose you're going to want me to actually talk too?"

"Oh no, I always prefer the silence to your annoying drawl, though it does help sometimes when you say proper words instead of forcing me to use my psychic powers."

Gibbs smirked.

"Sorry Doc, I thought you enjoyed the challenge." He shrugged.

"Oh there's a challenge and then there's you Leroy Jethro Gibbs."

Gibbs smirked in spite of himself.

"I hear things with Tim are better?"

"Yeah?" Gibbs turned and stared at her. "Where'd you hear that?"

"I have my sources." She smiled.

*** Grace stood at the top of the stairs, the basement door ajar while she listened. She heard the chink of glasses and Tim's almost contented sigh before Gibbs questioned him about Delilah. Their conversation was like none she had heard between them in the last 4 months, light, sincere, familiar. It warmed her a little inside. ***

"For what it's worth, I'm really glad."

"Yeah, me too. I think I lost it for a little while there."

"Lost what?"

"My head, my family, my love for Tim." Gibbs shrugged. "Myself, I could go on."

Grace smiled a little.

"What's so funny?" He frowned.

"Funny? Nothing. But do you realise what you've just done? You've just spoken honestly about yourself for the first time in, gosh, a real long time Gibbs."

Gibbs bowed his head in thanks but turned back around when Grace nudged him in the direction of Tony and Tali. Tony had just placed something else under the tree and pressed his hand to the bark before he stood up, Tali close to his chest and headed off in the direction he had came.

"You ever need a reason Gibbs, that there is it. Those two and the rest of your crazy, thrown-together family."

Gibbs sighed heavily.

"It's her birthday."

"I know." Grace nodded and smiled sadly at the father and child.

Gibbs nodded and spun back to face her, shaking himself out of the fog and offering her his arm.

"Coffee, Doctor Confalone?"

She took his arm and nodded.

"Why I thought you'd never ask Agent Gibbs."

Grace recalled something she'd overheard Gibbs say once: Rule 10- Never get personally involved in a case. Sound advice and one she should probably have taken. She had done all she could to integrate herself into his life but in fairness she'd had good reason. Never before had she hunted down a patient and forced them into counselling, interfered in the lives of their colleagues and pushed as hard as she had with Gibbs. But she had been personally involved from the beginning, ever since Taft had mentioned him to her and asked if she could help. She was doing him a favour and found that in doing that favour she had been inadvertently pulled into the very messy world that surrounded Agent Gibbs. Her main cause was to help; help him, help Tim, help both of them and the team in the process, though why she felt so strongly about it she didn't know. Gibbs wasn't just any other patient of hers, he was Gibbs, he who had suffered almost more than anyone she'd spoken to before, had suffered so much loss and trauma that she was amazed he was still standing and hadn't ever been through therapy before. He was strong, she didn't doubt that, and he was stubborn, more so than anyone she knew, but it was all self-preservation and whether it worked for him or not it didn't have such a positive impact on the rest of his team.

She'd owed it to them, and to Taft, and to Tim, to try and get through to him. She wasn't one to cave when things got tough, but then neither was Gibbs. That everything had worked out she was a blessing. Tony had returned with that little bundle of joy that was Tali, Delilah and Tim were better than ever and Tim and Gibbs had resolved their differences, to an extent, and well enough so that they had bonded, understood each other more. Tim now understood that Gibbs didn't think any less of him, didn't love him any less than the others, didn't think him useless and a disappointment- Gibbs loved him, every flaw and every attribute. Gibbs had realised that in attempting to keep Tim close he'd almost cause himself yet another loss, the loss of the son that never seemed to quite realise how brilliant he was, that he probably never told enough he was proud of, one that had been through as much hell as the rest of them and never showed it. Tim loved him, respected him and had it not been for Tim, he would not still be standing. There was that other thing: Rule 8- Never take anything for granted.

Gibbs owed it to them all to get this right this time, and she saw it in his eyes as he asked for her to schedule their next session as soon as possible, heard it in his voice as he said sorry for being an ass, and she knew when he showed up to their session prompt and spoke in great detail about how much he had struggled with Ziva's death. When he told her just how much he had struggled with Tony leaving, how Tim had picked up the pieces, and the job, without a second thought, and how he had realised he had taken all of his pent up emotion out on Tim. When he told her how he had felt so guilty for everything, ZIva, Tony, Tim, how he had tried to cover it up by being angry instead and how he had almost felt like he couldn't breathe when he'd seen Tim standing in his basement looking so absolutely lost and broken. All of it showed her that Gibbs was taking the first step in the right direction and that in it all, Tim would be his Saving Grace.

And what was that last one? Rule 11- When the job is done, walk away.