Strolling cheerfully, if albeit painfully, into his house Gibbs smiled at the scene that greeted him.

Mike was thrown in the nearest arm chair, looking peaceful.

The two girls had clearly won the war he just knew had raged for control of the couch and were lounging happily, whilst the two boys were sprawled haphazardly on the floor.

Vast amounts of food adorned the coffee table, and a cold beer was sitting on the table beside his usual spot in the corner of the room.

Walking in and depositing himself gingerly in his chair, he gracefully pretended not to notice the grins that were furtively exchanged between his four in response.

"What are we watching then?" he said gently, by way of greeting, offering Mike a nod in the process.

Tony answered first.

Of course he did.

"This, boss" he grinned, clambering to his feet and brandishing a DVD case, "is going to blow your mind."

Feigning a frown, Gibbs tilted his head to the side.

"Oh really? I thought we were watching my favourite film?"

Tony grinned and looked at the other three who grinned back.

"Well…we were, but then…Mike said he wasn't suffering through it again and we could pick whatever we wanted instead."

Gibbs shot a glare at the elder man who smiled benignly back at him.

"Oh did he indeed?"

"Not a problem right, Jethro?" he answered sweetly, now grinning at his protégée.

Giving up with a dramatic sigh, Gibbs smiled and waved to Tony to put on whatever hell he was about to be subjected to with good grace.

Abby stood next and gathering up a few bits on bobs on a plate from the makeshift buffet on the table, pressed the now dangerously overflowing plate into Gibbs' hands.

"Eat" she commanded, "you're peaky looking."

Rolling his eyes at her tone, he obligingly took the food and quickly kissed her on the forehead.

Settling down and discreetly wincing as a pain radiated through him, he looked fondly at the five people amassed in his living room.

Each of them drove him up the wall at times, but he knew he was damned lucky to have them.

As the film got underway, some classic black and white number that he hated on sight, he felt himself relax completely for the first time in days and days.

Every wound up nerve in his body unwound, his head was clear and he hadn't locked the door behind him.

Things were well and truly on their way back to normality.

Normality being the squabble that was now breaking out between Tony and Tim over the last cinnamon roll, lying innocently in the centre of the coffee table.

Habitually opening his mouth to scold them, he was beaten to the punch.

"Knock it off you two" Mike growled from his perch, "Tony, split the god damned thing in half and give the other bit to Tim."

Pouting instantly, Tony opened his mouth to protest.

"He's had two more than I have, and-"

"Don't make me come over there kid."

Sulkily, Tony ripped the Danish in half and reluctantly handed the larger side to Tim.

"That so hard?" Mike asked approvingly, snorting as McGee's face lit up at the cake.

Rolling his eyes but grinning good-naturedly, Tony shook his head.

"Now I see where he gets it from" he muttered under his breath to the other three, who chuckled in response.

"What was that, Tony?" Gibbs asked sweetly, happy to have let Mike deal with their squabbling, but being unable to resist teasing the kid.

"Uhh…nothing boss" he replied hastily, turning his gaze back to the television hurriedly.

Mike grinned as Gibbs rolled his eyes in response.

You'd swear he brutalised them the way his senior field agent carried on.

Time passed amicably, and the large spread of food quickly depleted as the film trundled on.

Gibbs, who was partially dozing in his chair, was alerted to its end by the excited summary that Tony was now providing, all the while dodging the pillows that were being expertly thrown at him by Ziva in response.

Checking the time he grimaced when he saw it was past one in the morning.

He'd had enough experience of his four to know that they did not do well without sleep.

Clearing his throat and straightening up in his chair, he smiled as four heads swivelled to him.

"Ok guys" he said gently, feeling a wave of tiredness come over him "time for bed. Beat it."

Despite the fact that they all looked exhausted, the predictable stream of protests came flying forth.

As he knew they would.

"Boss I'm not tired, I have at least two hours left in me" Tim whined.

"I can't even possibly consider sleeping until I've meditated" Abby groused.

"You Americans and your sleep" Ziva muttered.

"Boss I have the sequel to the movie somewhere around here" Tony pleaded.

Before he could open his mouth to dispel all these deep concerns, he was again beaten to the punch.

However, this time it wasn't to his aid.

"Aw hell probie, let them be" Mike instructed lazily from his corner.

Narrowing his eyes at the elder man, Gibbs shook his head.

"It's late, Mike. They're exhausted. They need-"

"To put on another movie, eat more junk and relax" Mike interrupted with a grin.

Growling slightly, Gibbs tried again.

"No. Time for bed. Now."

For the first time in a long time no one obeyed, all four sets of eyes instead of being trained on their boss were now being trained hopefully on their boss' boss.

"Tell him, Mike" Abby wheedled; being the only one they all knew could get away with it.

Smiling fondly at the eccentric lab rat he had instantly taken a shine to, Franks turned again to a glowering Jethro.

"You heard the lady probie; you let them alone now, you hear me?"

Throwing his hands up in feigned frustration, Gibbs slumped back in his chair, knowing the battle was lost.

"Fine…fine. But you can deal with them in the morning when they're cranky as hell" he muttered.

Grinning as he heard the mutinous tone in his protégées voice, Mike nodded amicably.

"Will do" he replied cheerfully, "put your movie on Tony."

Beaming, the senior field agent scrambled to do just that with an exasperated but secretly amused Gibbs looking on fondly.

The five soon settled down again, and the second film Gibbs had to concede was a lot better than the first and he was soon lost in it.

By the time the credits rolled around for the second time that night, he was however determined not to lose the fight about adequate sleeping for his people.

Tiredly reaching for the remote, he flicked off the television and held up a warning hand as the faint strains of protest began to waft up once again.

"No, that's it now. Time for bed, go on, move it."

Grumbling slightly, the four began to obediently move it.

Ziva unfurled herself with a yawn and Abby quickly followed suit, as Tony and Tim began to drag themselves up from their floor perches.

Tony, the eternal optimist, tried once more.

"Can we just-"

"Tony…"

Sighing, the senior agent admitted defeat and bade his boss a goodnight, waiting patiently for Abby to finish squeezing him as he did so.

As the four gathered at the bottom of the stairs, Ziva suddenly shot a mischievous look towards Gibbs whose eyes narrowed suspiciously in response.

"Thanks for telling us all those stories about Gibbs when he worked for you Mike" she crooned with much amusement in her voice, "they were very…enlightening."

With that, the four burst into peals of laughter and hightailed it up the stairs, conversing in low tones.

The more they talked, the more they laughed. Hearing the continued amusement drift down the stairs, Gibbs groaned and rubbed his hands across his face before turning accusingly on his boss.

"Please tell me you didn't…?"

Grinning unapologetically, Mike smiled his teasing smile.

"Sorry son, just couldn't help it" he laughed nonchalantly, much to Gibbs' mounting irritation.

Sighing in exasperation, Gibbs again scrubbed his eyes tiredly.

"Thanks for that Mike, really helpful" he growled, "I need them to still respect me after you leave you know."

Snorting, the elder man rolled his eyes in amusement, feeling another surge of pride for all that the man did for his now quiet miscreants.

"Aw shut up probie, you know that kids always want to know what their parents were like back in the day."

…..

A/N: I've actually reconsidered and decided to leave this story here, I think that its run its course and that a gentle ending was in order! A massive thank you to everyone for reading, I hope you've enjoyed! Thanks to everyone who reviewed along the way, really appreciated it!

Please let me know if there's an interest in a new story etc, and I'll try to come up with some more escapades for our favourite team! For those following The Trust Equation, new chapter should be up soon!

Thanks again guys, it's been fun!