Standard disclaimer applies as usual.

Sorry for the delay in getting this up, but I had to decide which way to take things. And to age myself a bit, the TV show 240-Robert was a real show and did start Mark Harmon along with John Bennett Perry and Joanna Kearnes. His name on the show was Dwayne Thibideaux. Thanks and enjoy.

PS... the ending his supposed to be like that for today.

Chp 9 Wednesday

When Kate knocked on Gibbs' door the next morning, she wasn't sure what to expect, however, seeing her boss shirtless was no where on her list.

"Did I come at a bad time?"

"No, you're right on time. I'm just running a bit late this morning. Storm last night knocked the power out and I forgot to set my backup alarm. TJ's in the kitchen and McGee made pancakes and sausage for breakfast. You can go ahead in while I finish getting ready."

"Okay." She made her way to the kitchen and raised an eyebrow at the apron McGee was wearing. "Cute McGee, I'll have to remember to tell Tony."

TJ chuckled softly. "Already sent him a picture via phone." He took a drink of milk and watched McGee turn red again.

"I didn't want to get my suit dirty and this was the only one I could find."

Kate nodded. "You go right on believing that one McGee." She took a seat at the table and helped herself to a plate. "Not bad." She took another bite as Gibbs came in, dressed for the office. She watched as he kissed TJ on the forehead and then nodded.

"You're cooler today, but I still want you in bed or on the couch." He looked over at Kate. "He's to rest as much as possible today. I'm bringing dinner home, so there's no reason for him to be in here messing with anything. If you want him to be a sounding board for your cases he can. All that I ask is that you make him lay down as much as possible. Ducky thinks if he stays horizontal a bit more, it might keep him from getting a fever again. The recliner works too if he wants to sit up a bit."

TJ rolled his eyes, but finished eating. "I'm going to go read for a bit." He gave his dad an easy hug. "See you tonight."

"If we get a case I'll call." He returned the hug, being careful of the healing ribs. "Love you."

"I know. See you later dad, love you, too." He went back up to his room and stretched out on the bed with the latest Jim Butcher book.

Gibbs watched him go, and then turned to Kate. "He hates storms, so he didn't get a lot of sleep last night. Plus the meds he's on drag him down a bit. If he falls asleep, just leave his door cracked so you can hear him, but don't let him sleep through lunch. There are leftovers in the fridge you guys can warm up. After he eats, if he wants to lay down again, that's fine."

She nodded. "I'll take care of him Gibbs, get going."

He looked over at McGee. "No later than 8 McGee. If we get a case, I'll call." He left and as he started towards work he sighed. While he was glad to have TJ with him, he just wished he'd arrived healthy. He hated worrying so much about his son.

Kate finished eating and put her plate in the sink as McGee sat down to eat. She poured herself a cup of coffee and sat back down. "So what was it like being alone with the kid?"

McGee chuckled softly. "First off, don't call him kid. It kinda pisses him off. Second, he's really smart and a fast learner. He's also got a keen eye for observation and is really good at pattern recognition."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "How'd you figure that out?"

"Game we were playing. He told me that he was able to identify some of the patterns that the game generated and was able to develop a strategy that went along with those patterns to help him win. Beat me three times in a row."

"Huh, guess I'll have to keep on my toes then."

"TJ's a really good person Kate and he's full of surprises."

"I'll have to take your word for it until I see it for myself."

A few hours later, Kate threw the folder she was reading down in disgust and groaned.

TJ raised an eyebrow as he came downstairs. "Dead end?"

She jumped, her hand going for her gun before she realized where she was and who was speaking. "God, you're just like your dad when he does that."

He grinned. "Who do you think taught me?" He took a seat in the recliner and leaned it back a bit.

Kate snorted. "Yeah well, sometimes I think he's part cat."

"Would be a panther if he was." He nodded his head towards the folder. "Think talking about it would help?"

"Guess it couldn't hurt, but I'm not sure where to start."

"Beginning is always good and if you want my help, I need to know what the case is about."

She nodded and then started telling him about the case.

Gibbs hung up the phone and grinned, then looked over at Tony. "DiNozzo, call Fornell and tell him the suspect we have is all his."

Tony frowned. "Thought we took care of Petty Officers?"

"We do, but Markison isn't a petty officer, just impersonating one."

"Right boss." He started calling Fornell.

McGee raised an eyebrow. "How did Kate come up with that?"

"She started bouncing ideas off of TJ. Said he made her think outside the box."

"So, uh, what's he planning on doing when he gets older?"

Gibbs just grinned as he went back to work, proud of both his agents and his son.

Kate watched TJ as he took a nap in the recliner. He'd really surprised her by some of the questions that he asked which ultimately led her to finding out that the killer was only impersonating a petty officer. Now, after she'd written her final report and sent it to Gibbs, she finally understood what McGee and Tony had both been trying to tell her: TJ was an intelligent kid that had been put through the wringer, but instead of becoming a statistic that they might use, he was making something of himself.

When Gibbs got home that night with Thai, he was only slightly surprised to see Kate sitting next to TJ on the couch watching something on TV. He grinned when he realized that it was an episode of some cop show and looked like it was shot in the 70s.

"Couldn't find anything more current to watch?" He reached a hand over the couch and ruffled his son's hair.

"Hey dad," TJ didn't even turn around. "Keep telling Kate that the younger partner on here looks a lot like you did when you were younger."

"How would you know what I looked like when I was younger?" He took a seat in his chair.

"Mom showed me some pictures of you she had from when you were in college."

Kate rolled her eyes. "And I keep telling him that the guy in 240-Robert looks nothing like you. Besides, even if you had acted, you'd never be saddled with a name like Dwayne Thibideaux."

Gibbs shook his head. "No, I've never acted, but for a while when that show was on I did get mistaken for the guy a lot." He nodded at the food on the table. "Dig in guys."

Later on, after they'd watched a movie and finished off the Thai, TJ took a shower leaving Gibbs alone to talk to Kate. As soon as she heard the water running, Kate turned to her boss.

"He needs something to do Gibbs, and soon."

"Ducky's not going to let him do anything until next week, but I plan on getting Morrow to let me bring him into work starting then. He can help Abby out in the lab a bit and run errands for her. Hopefully, he'll get this internship and that'll let him work with us."

"Will he be able to pass a background check?"

"He already has Kate. It's why he doesn't get a regular visitor's pass and can come up stairs without an escort. He's on the approved list for building access and can go to Ducky's, Abby's lab or up to the bullpen without escort."

"I know that Tony said he'd just seen him sitting at your desk, but I guess none of us ever questioned how he'd gotten up there in the first place. Well, Tony might have, but he was more intrigued by the fact that it was, as he put it, a 'mini-Gibbs' sitting there."

Gibbs chuckled softly. "Yeah, the look on Tony's face was pretty priceless."

TJ rejoined them sans shirt and raised an eyebrow. "Talking about the first day that I showed up at headquarters?"

"Yes, we were. Got the wrap?"

He gave it to his dad, and then put his arms on his head.

"Colors are starting to fade." Gibbs started wrapping his ribs.

Kate snorted. "If that's fading I'd hate to see what they looked like before now."

TJ looked over at her. "Kinda an eggplant color with some greens and blues mixed in. Now it's less purple and more blues, greens and hints of yellow." He put his arms down as his dad finished. Then he gave him a hug. "Thanks dad, night." He looked over at Kate. "Night Kate, and thanks for staying with me today."

"You're welcome, sleep well."

"Put a shirt on before you go to sleep kiddo." He kissed his son's forehead. "And take your meds."

"Yes sir." He went upstairs, stopping in the bathroom first to do as his dad said and then to his room. He slipped a T-shirt on and climbed into bed, falling asleep moments later.

Gibbs watched him go and looked over at Kate. "I really do appreciate you watching him today. Ducky wants to see him tomorrow, so I'll take him in with me in the morning and Palmer can bring him back a bit later."

She nodded. "I'm going to call it a day as well. Finally figuring out what was bothering me about that guy made me realize how tired I am."

"Solving a case tends to do that sometimes." He watched her go upstairs, and then went down to work on his boat a bit before calling it a night himself.

The next morning Gibbs went into TJ's room to make sure he was up and once again was met by an empty bed. The difference was this time there was no sign that his son had changed clothes to do anything and the bed was unmade. He frowned and checked the bathroom before heading downstairs. When he didn't find him in the kitchen, living room or basement, he stepped outside and found his son leaning against the door frame asleep.

He released the breath he didn't realize he'd been holding and watched the teen for a few minutes before squatting just outside of arms reach and waking him. "Hey kiddo, time to wake up."

TJ started awake, sitting up and holding his ribs. He sighed when he realized where he was and who had woken him before settling back against the house, blushing. "Didn't realize I'd fallen asleep."

"What are you doing out here anyway?"

"Had a nightmare about 5:30 so I came out here to watch the sunrise. Guess I fell asleep while watching it."

"Let's get you inside. You need to get dressed so we can go." He moved closer and helped his son up, frowning when he noticed how stiff he was, but not saying anything.

Once inside, they almost knocked over Kate as she came running down the stairs.

She blushed as she came to a stop. "Thought I'd overslept."

TJ shook his head. "No, I scared dad. He thought I'd gone and done something when all that happened was I went out to watch the sunrise and fell asleep."

She grinned. "I did that a couple of times growing up myself. I'm going to start breakfast."

"Why don't I get that Kate and you can finish getting ready?" Gibbs asked, remembering her tendency to go towards the healthier side of things.

"Okay." She went back upstairs.

Gibbs looked at his son. "Come on, walk with me to the kitchen." He went ahead of him and started the coffee, then watched TJ as he walked in behind him. "Chill of the morning got to your knee, didn't it?"

TJ blushed hard as he took a seat at the table. "Yeah, it did. Guess I was out there a bit longer than I thought I was."

"I know you're getting tired of being cooped up here at the house TJ and that's part of the reason I'm taking you in with me today."

"What's the other part?"

"Ducky wants to take a look at you, see how you're doing."

"Thought that might be it." He sighed. "Least I get out of the house for a bit." He stood up again. "I'm going to get changed."

"Put your knee brace on." Gibbs watched him as he waved in acknowledgment and left. He made a note to tell Ducky about his knee if TJ didn't and then, turned back to the stove and started making something for them all.