Chapter Text
Chapter One
Tim woke up, seemingly still thinking. The same thought that had been in his head as he had finally drifted off to sleep last night. The same thought that had been creeping up on him for months now, really years if he was truthful. That he had resolutely put on the back burner during the Parsons' witch hunt; nothing could happen, nothing would even be considered until Gibbs had been cleared. Once that had happened, he had tried to keep the thought from floating to the front of his brain when Ziva didn't return to the agency with her partners, but it had instead zoomed to the forefront of his mind. When she hadn't bothered to say goodbye to him, one of her partners, when there was silence, he gave in to the thought.
For all the emotional turmoil surrounding and sometimes engulfing him, he was still a man of science and did his best to base his personal decisions on logic. It took him some time to tame the emotion surrounding the thought so that he could consider all scenarios, all possibilities. He had to compartmentalize the process of following through with this thought as it threatened to overwhelm him. That was really the answer he needed, right there. It was overwhelming him; it was time to put his thought into action.
And so he started searching the agency network and the various tools, some of which he'd developed, for options. When he had enough information and had done as much research as he could do on his own, he requested a private meeting. The speed with which his request was answered surprised him. Had this been anticipated? Was it being dictated instead of him presenting it? In his mind, he reviewed the information he'd gathered and realized for that to be happening there would have to have been signs of some sort. Despite Gibbs' decree about coincidences, Tim believed they did happen. His belief was that it was best to not trust in coincidence until proved otherwise and in this case he had used the information he'd accessed to prove otherwise. With the information he had at hand, the speedy response was just a coincidence.
And so at the end of a long day of cold case file reviews, he gathered his belongings and headed out. He put his things in his car, still feeling a twitch of remorse at selling the Porsche for a more practical vehicle. He supposed it could be called sexy from an environmental perspective but he hadn't yet met a woman who was so into the environmental issues she would find this car attractive. He had, however, needed to stop making those expensive payments. Although legal adults, Rob and Sarah were still in school and he insisted on making their lives more comfortable and safer than their various scholarship and grant funds could. In addition, he'd had one too many close calls during the winter months in his beloved sports car and he knew the odds of an accident were not in his favor. He moved his unsexy, unloved practical car to the back of the parking garage and watched until he spotted Gibbs' bright yellow car and DiNozzo's bright blue rental car leaving. He waited a few more minutes and then returned to the building, going directly to the Director's suite. It was late enough that none of the people he worked around were there but early enough that the cleaning crew hadn't started on this floor and the night shift was just getting settled in, busy catching up and not watching to see who went where.
The Director greeted him, poker faced as usual though Tim sensed his curiosity and was heartened by his eyes. He'd seen those eyes glare daggers as sharp and lethal as Gibbs', perhaps more so given his position, he'd seen those eyes show fear and in recent months display anger, grief and exhaustion. This look was welcoming and…relieved? So maybe not a coincidence after all, but good timing?
Rather than retreating to the chair behind his desk, Vance sat at the large conference table and gestured to Tim to join him.
"Agent McGee, I was surprised and happy to see your request for a meeting as I need to speak with you. But it was your request, so you go first. "
And so Tim finally said the thought out loud. While it had been playing on a continuous loop in his head, he had not yet said it aloud. He felt an immediate sense of relief. He glanced at Director Vance and saw the man regarding him with…a gleam in his eye? So it was good timing. He hoped.
Without making any further reference to Tim's request, the director asked him several questions which confused the younger man until he stopped analyzing and just listened. Eventually he realized there was more than one option available and smiled. Vance smiled back at him; he enjoyed watching the junior agent's thought processes. Then he explained the big picture he had in mind, adding that he'd wanted to speak with Tim about it but hadn't been sure it would be welcomed. When Tim gave him a questioning look, Vance referred to a conversation they'd had a couple of years ago when Tim had politely refused another idea. Tim realized he'd never told the man why and now he did. It had been for a purely personal reason. Vance nodded, he'd gone back into the younger man's file to review some things and thought that might have been the case. He had also noticed that there was a language skill listed that nobody had ever mentioned and he said as much to the younger man, addressing him in that same language. Smiling, Tim replied in like manner, telling him why he'd acquired that particular skill. Several years ago he'd dated a young woman who spoke that language at home and she taught Tim. While not ever having displayed any particular skill in other languages, the personal connection in learning this one had led to many happy hours of being taught the basic language and practicing it both with his girlfriend and her family. When her father, a diplomat, had been assigned to Japan, Tim had missed his girl and the language lessons.
When they wound down from testing each other, each man surprised at how well the other could speak the particular language, Tim had questions. "To clarify, Sir, is it one option or the other or both?"
"Both. The special project would be first, for 4 weeks and then we'd move you to the other office."
"And that would be a lateral move - I'd still be a junior agent?"
"Yes, at first. Until the person I spoke of leaves, which will be anywhere from two to three months after your arrival. Until she leaves, you will be doing some training, then shadowing her and finally swapping positions so that when she does go, there is no transition, you're already doing the job. At that point, you will be officially promoted."
"And she will not be returning. What if she changes her mind?"
"I do not believe it's likely, she and her husband have waited too long for this but for the sake of argument, let's say she does. She would then take whatever spot is open in the office."
Tim nodded, there wasn't much else he could do about that and he was confident that the agency would protect both their agents. He decided not to worry about it and dismissed it from his mind.
"How soon would this happen?"
"How soon can you be ready?"
When Tim looked at him, thinking of all the things he'd have to do, Vance held up his hand. "Finances and paperwork, one full day. The agency handles all your paperwork with the host country, in this case countries. Moving, all you have to do is pack the clothes you want to take with you. A moving company will come in and do the rest. Your belongings will go in a shipping container and be sent to your new assignment - the permanent one."
"I don't have much, Sir. Would it be easier to just rent furnished over there or is that done?"
"Not that I've ever heard, no. And a word to the wise Tim - if your bed is any larger than a double, take it with you. With your height, you're never going to find a bed there long enough."
Tim looked at him, "Speaking from experience?"
"Yes I am, unfortunately, I spent my time over there scrunched up. And I'm not anywhere near your height!"
"All right Sir, what about my car, does that get shipped too?"
Vance grinned, "I'm assuming you'll want your Porsche over there."
"I would if I still had it, Director, traded it for a more practical car after we left last spring."
Vance shook his head, "That was the end of an era, McGee, sorry to hear that." He paused. "If you sell your car here, you should be able to buy what you need over there. Your new team can help you with that. Your temporary housing will be close enough to walk to the office, so you won't have to do anything right away."
"How long were you there, Director?"
"Three years and that's the minimum, Tim. Anything less than that really isn't worth it for the agency or the office. In our case, Kayla was born there and we made the move back to the States shortly after. Back to the time you need…today's Monday. Think you could be ready to go by Friday?"
"If I have the rest of the week to get ready, yes, I can do that."
"Good man! Then you start the orientation for the project on Monday, a week from today. You leave Friday, have the weekend to get caught up a bit on your jet lag and trust me, you will have some! Now, am I telling Gibbs first or will you?"
Tim looked at him and inwardly sighed. He was going to have to do it. He needed to tell the man who had hand -picked him for his team and then for most of the following years, ignored him, benched him and expressed his impatience and disrespect, his strong dislike of having to rely on him for the electronic skills that allowed him to dig out the information frequently responsible for pointing the way, if not outright solving their cases. Skills he brought to the team, the very skills Gibbs had wanted.
"I'll do it, Sir. It likely won't be until Thursday night, but I'll do it."
"You don't have to Tim; don't feel you have to prove anything."
"I don't, not really. But I do owe him."
"I think that's debatable, I think he owes you, but you're moving out and moving on, right?"
"Yes Sir."
"So you will be working on a special project for me all week and are not to be disturbed."
"And you'll be informing Gibbs and the team of that? Do I then have permission to ignore their calls, including Abby's, Director?"
"Yes, Agent McGee, I will tell them and you have permission to decline their calls. We'll need to issue you a different phone anyway, one for use overseas. Tim, as of this moment, you no longer report to Gibbs, you're no longer a part of the MCRT. Until you report to your permanent office, you report directly to me. "
Tim gulped. "Thank you Sir." He paused, "Director, I would like to tell Dr. Mallard and Jimmy Palmer – sooner than Gibbs, that is."
"That's fine, Tim, whatever you're comfortable with. It's your decision."
"Thanks."
"Get in touch with Ms. Cooke tomorrow and she'll get your flight booked. Someone from the office will meet you when your flight lands Saturday and will take you to your hotel. Ever been overseas before?"
Tim shrugged, "Before my father died, yes. Afterward no, we grew up in pretty Spartan circumstances."
"I thought maybe after college – MIT that is."
Tim shook his head. "No, I still had two minor children with me. Had to find a job, move and get them into schools."
"Well, you've earned this, Agent McGee. Travel over there when you can. Once you move to your permanent job, you'll be positioned to travel easily between continents."
He paused, "What about your sister and brother?"
Tim grinned, "The beauty of this is that Sarah just got accepted to grad school in the UK and Rob won an award that will give him a year's study at the medical school of his choice, nearly anywhere in the world, including the UK and Germany. So my kids will be on the same continent."
"And only a few hours flight away, close enough for holidays. As soon as I heard the news from Pete, your future Team Leader, I thought about you but was afraid leaving your family would be too difficult. Now it all seems to be fitting together very well."
He paused, "Save a night this week for dinner at my place if possible. I can give you some cultural tips that might help – of course you knowing the language will help immensely, professionally and personally."
"I'll do that, Sir. Not Thursday please, aside from my announcement to Gibbs, I'll want to spend that with my sister and brother." He paused, "If I may ask - what kind of cases do they get there? Wouldn't our ships have an NCIS Agent aboard to handle problems?"
Vance smiled, "That's an excellent question, Tim. Yes, all our ships that dock in Piraeus are large enough to have an Agent Afloat. Realize that we're spread a bit thin in Europe, with only the London, Marseilles', Rota and Athens offices to handle our business. It gets tricky because our authority follows the US Navy, so when one of our ships visits Croatia, for example, if anything happens, the Athens team would be sent to investigate along with the agent afloat. Here we cover states, overseas we tend to cover a number of countries. There's a lot more investigation of terrorist organizations and that covers just about every country. You'll be working with agents from the other European offices, they rotate call outs to neighboring countries so no one office is routinely stretched too thin. Internationally, Turkey and Cyprus are in the neighborhood and Israel is not that far away. You will be working with Mossad now and then, another reason you're perfect for this job. Did you meet Director Elbaz when she was here?" Tim shook his head.
Vance continued, "You may still. In the past, your new office has run joint operations with Mossad. What you won't get as much of are the cases where the spouse is involved or your everyday garden variety murder, if there is such a thing. There are bases, but with Marines deployed in war zones and the Navy aboard ships, comparatively speaking there are few spouses or families on those bases."
"I'm sure there will be even more drug cases."
"Yes and you'll be looking at the sources there, not just distribution."
"Sounds challenging!"
"It is, and also a very different atmosphere. You've had the bulk of your NCIS career here at headquarters; in outlying offices things aren't as political and usually not quite as stressful. The overseas offices each carry a strong flavor of their host country. Are you up on your Greek history – ancient and modern?"
Tim smiled, "I will be by the time I get there, Director!"
"Attaboy. Now, any more questions? And have I covered everything?"
"You said three years minimum, is there a maximum?"
"Not currently…your new boss is a perfect example of why there isn't a rule about that. Before I tell you about that though, just a couple more things. In the Athens office, which is physically in Piraeus, Athens' Port City, the Team Leader is also the SAIC, the Supervising Agent in Charge and runs the office. There is a support staff as someone has to maintain the office when you are all on call out. Currently there are three staff, one is American; the other two are Greek, locals. That really helps us maintain a solid presence in our host countries. Other than that, there are Marines stationed at the US Embassy in Athens and there's always a CIA agent stationed there. Yes, you'll have to deal with them. Believe it or not, they're less scary and frequently more helpful when they're outside the US, doing their real jobs and not here trying to trick us into doing things for them. Not all CIA agents are Trent Kort! As far as the Embassy, as the new kid – and a bachelor – you'll be going to plenty of embassy parties. Have a couple of tuxes made for you when you get there, it's much easier and less expensive. Even though you're not attached to the Embassy, as an American working in Greece, you represent the United States. Now…oh, I was going to tell you about Pete. He transferred in as my senior field agent near the end of my first year there, I was Team Lead, SAIC. He was a bachelor, in his early 40s. During his first six months, he met a Greek-American woman who was there on vacation and they've never left. They have 4 kids and it's been, well, Kayla's 14 so it's been 16 years. They come to the States on vacation and when I haul him here once a year; he's a good example of an American who went overseas and has never really come back. We waived his mandatory field retirement until he reaches 60, in three years. Do the job I know you will and if you want it, the Team Lead, SAIC job will be yours – unless you're ready for reassignment by then."
Tim's eyes were popping out of his skull. "Director, this is like Christmas!"
"No guarantees with the SAIC position although I have every confidence in you." Vance looked at him with a twinkle in his eye. "Forgive me for being a little…parental for a moment. Just want to tell you to make sure you take warm clothes to London, office casual is fine, and lighter wear to Greece. Suits in the UK are fine if you're more comfortable in them, but for a month and on the project you'll be on, not necessary. Do keep one to wear on your annual trips to DC. Suits are superfluous in your position in Greece. You'll want the lightest weight clothes available; my advice is take what you normally wear here in the summer and then buy locally when you get there. And Tim, this will be difficult for you, it is for everyone. When you get to London, you'll be immersed in your project and probably won't have time to get homesick. You will in Greece – I was and I had my home – Jackie - with me. Stay in touch with Dr. Mallard, Jimmy, anyone else here you're friends with. I'll be happy to be a resource for you, as will Pam." Tim nodded; he had been trying not to think about that. "The British culture and ours are enough alike so that you won't notice too much of a difference. There are differences of course, but most of us Yanks do fine in the UK. Other countries, the language is different, the culture is noticeably different and that's when you'll start feeling the twinges. My advice, Tim, as weird as this sounds – when it gets unbearable, go find a McDonald's, have a burger. It'll be somewhat different but it is a little slice of American life around the globe. Don't do it often though, there's way too much wonderful food to waste it on MickeyDs! I'm just saying it will give you some brief relief from culture shock and wanting to jump on the next flight to the U.S."
Tim had a couple additional questions and the two men talked for a few more minutes before Tim left. He went downstairs to the bullpen and quickly cleaned his personal belongings from his desk, having snagged an empty box near the mail room. He looked at the items on the cubicle walls behind his desk, there was really nothing there he wanted. He had another Venetian Snares banner at home and the rest were photos or memos, nothing he needed to take. Leaving the bullpen, he looked back and imagined he could hear Kate berating DiNozzo for something or Ziva threatening them both with paperclips, Gibbs sneaking up on them, Tony spouting off a movie reference. Shaking his head, he thought ahead to his new adventure and smiled, feeling like he'd just won the lottery. He picked up his box and walked out of the bullpen.