A few days later Tony and Tim went for lunch at a café overlooking the river.

"Is that what you're having with your sandwich?" asked McGee in a tone which suggested both disappointment and bewilderment.

Tony looked at the bowl of carrot and celery sticks and then at McGee, "Sure," he said, "I reckon the last few days haven't been good for the McPhysique."

Tim affected ignorance, "I don't know what your side order has to do with my body," he said loftily.

"Suit yourself," said Tony. He took a bite of his sandwich and then said, "So. What you going to do?"

"What are you going to do?" asked Tim, instinctively snaffling a carrot stick.

"That's what Gibbs asked me," said Tony, "asked me if I was going to go and do sterling work somewhere else."

"What did that mean?" asked Tim as he crunched on a piece of celery.

Tony didn't answer directly, "does it still feel odd to you?" he asked, "you know, Gibbs retiring?"

"Have you ever felt an earthquake?" asked Tim.

"No, have you?"

"No, but I think it would feel like this. Something you take for granted suddenly shaking, not being secure."

"Might be a good thing," mused Tony.

"Earthquakes are good?" asked Tim.

"No. Earthquakes are bad," said Tony firmly.

"Then what are you talking about?" McGee, feeling under pressure, stole another carrot.

Tony sighed, looked at his empty bowl and raised a hand to order another side of crudités. "I meant that something you take for granted suddenly not being there might be a good thing."

"I'm not following you."

"It's beginning to feel a bit liberating," said Tony, "thinking the unthinkable, facing the unfaceable, tackling the un …"

"Yeah, I get the idea," said Tim. "Hey, this isn't leading up to a movie reference, is it?"

"Oooh," said Tony, "I hadn't thought of that. But no, no movie reference. What I mean is, that once you're over the trauma you might find this whole Gibbs retiring thing to be not all bad."

"I don't know," said Tim worriedly nibbling on another carrot.

"Time to dream the dream, Tim; live the life, reach for the stars, aim for …"

"You sure this isn't a movie reference?" said McGee.

"Maybe," conceded Tony, "when you're soaked in movie …"

"Trivia?" suggested Tim.

"… history and facts," corrected Tony, "it's not always possible to remember every source. What I'm saying is …"

"There's a silver lining to every cloud?"

"Exactly."

"A pot of gold at the end of every rainbow?"

"If you say so, although I'm not sure how Gibbs leaving is a rainbow but you're the McNovelist."

"Good comes out of …"

"Yes, yes," said Tony impatiently, "you've got the hang of it but we've only got ten minutes before we have to be back. Gibbs hasn't mellowed so much that he won't have us cleaning the evidence garage with a toothbrush if we're late."

"So we should seize the moment?" said McGee.

"Yes," said Tony firmly.

"And what are you going to do?" asked Tim, "You know, to seize your moment?"

"I've filled in my application," said Tony.

"And mine is on my desk," said Tim, "I'm going to make hay while …"

"Come on, McGee," said Tony wearily, "you can tell me the rest while we walk back."

NCISNCIS

Dr Mallard was sitting pensively at his desk in Autopsy when Jimmy Palmer arrived.

"Good morning, Dr Mallard, what's that you're looking at?"

"Ah, good morning, Mr Palmer. Yes, this is something I found among my mother's possessions when she died. It's a paperweight. Look, it's a dandelion clock perfectly preserved in glass."

"It's beautiful, Doctor," said Jimmy earnestly.

"It is, isn't it? Something so fragile, so transitory yet frozen in time."

"Yes," said Jimmy, a little puzzled.

"It seems to me, Mr Palmer, that we have been like this dandelion."

"We have?"

"Yes. Stuck in time. Not in a bad way, I hasten to say, but motionless all the same."

"Doctor?"

"I'm sure this is fanciful but it seems to me that Agent Gibbs' decision to retire has perhaps unfrozen us."

"Yes?"

"Yes, he is such a powerful personality that we have somehow, I don't know, been almost enchanted by his presence, in thrall to him."

"Enchanted?" said Palmer doubtfully.

"Well, perhaps enchanted is the wrong word. Nevertheless, after the initial shock, I find the idea of change, following dear Jethro's departure to be rather liberating."

"You do?"

"Yes," said Ducky firmly, "I do. Now, Mr Palmer, I must ask you to brace yourself."

"You must?"

"Yes, indeed, I insist."

"Very well, Doctor."

"In fact, it would probably be best if you sat, Mr Palmer."

"OK," said Jimmy as he obediently hopped on to an autopsy table.

"There is no easy way to say this, Mr Palmer," said Ducky solemnly, "I have decided to retire."

"Retire?"

"Retire. I have decided to write my family history. The Mallard contribution to Scottish history has been overlooked. I feel, that in my twilight years, I should correct that omission. But I fear I cannot write this treatise while still fulfilling my duties as Medical Examiner."

Jimmy was silent.

"Do you understand what I have just said, Mr Palmer?"

"Yes, Doctor. Um, I hope … um, I'm sure it will be an … interesting read."

"Mr Palmer," said Ducky, "if you don't mind my saying so, and I say this with all due modesty, you don't seem quite as … upset as I might have expected."

"Oh. Well. You see …"

"Out with it, Mr Palmer," said Ducky commandingly.

"Well, you see. That dandelion clock thing."

"Yes?"

"I understand what you mean."

"You do?"

"Absolutely. And so …"

"Yes?"

"I've decided that although working with you has been, well, better than I could ever have expected. And I will always be grateful to you for giving me the job. And for all the knowledge you have imparted and …"

"Yes, yes, Mr Palmer."

"I've decided, and Breena agrees, that it's a bit early in my medical career to be specialising as a Medical Examiner. And so …"

"And so?"

"I applied for a place on a paediatrics programme at Georgetown University Hospital."

"And?"

"I was accepted. I start in a month."

"Bravo, Mr Palmer, bravo!"

NCISNCIS

"Gentlemen," said the Director, "come in. Sit down."

Tim and Tony sat down in front of the Director's desk. Tony sighed when he realised there were no snacks for Tim to pilfer.

The Director pointed to two folders on his desk, "I wanted to discuss the applications you have both submitted."

Tony and Tim nodded.

"Agent McGee," I was pleased to see your application. However, are you aware of the one that Agent DiNozzo has made?"

"Uh, no, Director. Although I think I could guess."

"I see."

"But Tony … Agent DiNozzo and I agreed that we would follow our dreams, dance to the beat …"

"McGee!" said the Director in a surprised voice.

"Uh, Agent McGee has found the last few days … difficult," said Tony tactfully, "what he means to say is that we came to our decisions separately and independently."

"Yes," said McGee a little sheepishly, "as Agent DiNozzo said."

"I see," said Vance magisterially. "Well, if Agent DiNozzo does not object, I will show you his application and see if that causes you to change your mind. Agent DiNozzo?"

"I have no objection, Director," said Tony formally.

The Director handed the folder to Tim who read the contents and then looked up in astonishment.

Tony shrugged.

NCISNCIS

"Hi, Tony, Hi, Tim," said Abby as they entered her lab.

They stood by the door, a little unnerved by the unusual silence in Abby's domain.

"Er, Abs," said Tony after a while, "you asked us down here, you know."

"I know," said Abby. She walked over to them and draped an arm round their necks, "you know that I love you both, don't you?"

"Sure. Of course," they replied, still wary.

"Has Ducky shown you his cool paperweight?" she asked.

"The one with the pickled thumb?" asked McGee.

"No," said Abby, "but that one is really neat too. No, the one with the frozen dandelion clock."

"Ah," said Tony, "the one which kicked off his theory of us all being enthralled by Gibbs? Stuck in a Gibbs warp?"

"Yes," said Abby.

"Then yes," said Tony, "we've seen it."

Silence fell.

"OK," said Tim finally, "good to talk. We'll be heading back."

"No," wailed Abby, "don't go."

"OK, Abs," said Tony pacifically, "we'll stay."

"You know that I don't want Gibbs to retire," said Abby, "I really, really, really don't want him to go."

"We know, Abby," said Tim, thinking that the lab being draped in black since the announcement was a pretty good clue, "we know."

"But," said Abby, "I do sort of get what Ducky meant."

"You do?" asked Tim.

"Yes. Which is kind of weird because I don't really do change."

"We know," agreed Tony as he remembered the dirges that Abby had been playing for days.

"But," said Abby, "it is sort of liberating."

"Yes!" said Tim enthusiastically, "it's like finding your star, climbing every mountain …"

"McGee!" said Tony firmly, "hush, this is Abby's moment."

"Oh, yes, of course, sorry," said McGee penitently.

"You know all those head-hunters that contact me?" said Abby.

"Who you turn down?" asked Tony.

"Yes. Well, I got this offer."

"Yes?" said Tim.

"From this company who are looking at new ways to trial experimental drugs without animal testing."

"Sounds good," said Tony cautiously.

"It's wonderful," said Abby, "and I think I could do it really well. I mean, don't get me wrong. I've loved doing my work here. But I think it's time …"

"To take the road less travelled," said Tim who was thoroughly in the swing of searching out clichés. "The path ..."

"Yes," said Abby, "I knew you'd understand."

NCISNCIS

"That was a surprise," said the Director to Gibbs.

"What?" asked Gibbs.

"You don't think Dr Mallard, Palmer and Miss Scuito all deciding to leave was a surprise?"

"Sure, but you've got used to that by now," said Gibbs, "although Bishop had a shock when she got back from that course at Quantico."

"Indeed," said Leon, "but I meant this leaving party was a shock. Who'd have thought that Miss Scuito would have organized a tea party as your leaving do?"

Gibbs shrugged, "there was coffee as well. I thought it kinda fitted. Ducky likes tea. Abby likes cupcakes. She brought donuts with sprinkles for McGee. DiNozzo and Palmer will eat pretty much anything."

"McGee's not leaving," the Director pointed out.

"You decided what to do about that?" asked Gibbs.

"I was surprised," admitted Vance, "once he knew what DiNozzo was doing, I expected him to change his mind."

"He didn't though."

"No. Although he seems to have found this poetic streak lately. Have you noticed?"

"Hard not to," said Gibbs, "it'll wear off."

"Hope so," said Leon, "not sure how well that stuff would go down in Cybercrimes."

"That's where's he going then?"

"Told him this morning. He was the obvious candidate to head up the new department."

Gibbs nodded with satisfaction.

"So long as he lays off the philosophising," added Vance a trifle gloomily.

"And DiNozzo? What about his application?" asked Gibbs.

"Ask him yourself," said the Director mysteriously, "looks as if he's waiting for you."

Gibbs looked up and saw Tony on the other side of the room.

"He said he'd give me a ride home. Guess he didn't know that Abby had organised a dry celebration!" He cast a last look round the squad room, scene of so much that had been important to him for years and then held out a hand to the Director, "Thank you, Director. It's been an honour."

"Not a pleasure?" asked Leon drily as he took the hand.

"That too, Leon," said Gibbs with his characteristic half-smile, "that too."

NCISNCIS

"Where do you want all this?" asked Tony as he staggered through Gibbs' front door weighed down by bags of greetings cards and farewell presents.

"On the floor by the window," ordered Gibbs, "I'll sort it out later."

"I could put the cards up for you," offered Tony.

Gibbs glared at him.

"I promise not to read all the messages," said Tony hastily.

"Want a drink?" asked Gibbs hoping to prevent Tony decorating his room.

"Always," said Tony as he accepted a beer.

"Steak?" asked Gibbs.

"Sure," said Tony.

"I'll get it ready," said Gibbs.

"Need a hand?" asked Tony.

"No," said Gibbs, "here, read a book if you get bored waiting."

He took a book from a shelf and handed it to Tony who froze when he saw what it was.

Sometime later, as they companionably chewed their steaks, Tony broke the silence,

"How did you know?"

"What? The sterling work?"

"Yep."

"When I went to visit Dad. He had a shelf of Dan Sterling books."

"He did?"

"Yes, he didn't read a whole lot so I asked him about them. He said you sent him the first one."

"I remember. It was a thank you for that sweater."

"He said. Said he read the first one and enjoyed it. Easy to read, he said, short stories. Basketball coach who keeps ending up in the middle of mysteries."

Tony continued to eat his food.

"I read one too," continued Gibbs, "it was good. Combination of sports and detective work."

Tony took a gulp of his beer.

"And there was something familiar about the writing style. So I played a hunch. Looked in your personnel file."

Tony sighed. "And it was there."

"Your notification to HR that you had additional part-time work as an author."

"I've got friends from Ohio who work for some of the big teams," said Tony, "they give me some background. And well, the detective bit. I don't really need help with that."

"They're good books, Tony," said Gibbs.

"Short stories are pretty easy to write," said Tony, "easy to fit in with work. Even working for a demanding boss like you."

"Washington Post gives you good reviews," said Gibbs.

"You been doing research, Gibbs?"

"It's just picking up a newspaper," said Gibbs, "even I can manage that. The reviewers say that you're a good writer but that you should move up to novels. They say that you've got a lyrical style that will only be fully realised if you're no longer constrained by the short story format."

"Wow, Boss," said Tony, "you're beginning to sound like McGee."

"Well?" said Gibbs.

"Well, what? Why did I keep quiet about it?"

"For one," said Gibbs.

"They took off slowly," said Tony, "didn't want people to know in case it didn't work out."

"And when they did?"

"Felt a bit odd to say. And it was nice to have something completely separate. Hey, you should understand that. You know about secrets."

"Have you told McGee?" asked Gibbs.

"Yes. When he found out about my application."

"What'd he say?"

"He's in shock. Guard your snacks and fries. You leaving and me turning out to be a writer has rocked his world."

Gibbs smiled. "And that application?"

"Approved by the Director. One year's sabbatical to write that novel. Got an advance from the publisher. Scary stuff."

"And after a year?"

"Back to NCIS. See what opportunity there is. Which star I can hitch my wagon to, which mountain I can …"

Gibbs slapped his head. Tony grinned.

"It's been good, hasn't it, Boss?"

"Yes."

"We did good things, didn't we?"

"Yes. We did."

"To the future."

"To the future, Anthony. And I want a free copy of that novel."

"Hey. Impoverished author here. Buy one like everyone else has to!"

Gibbs glared at him, a toned down version but still a glare.

"Yes, Boss. Of course. I may even dedicate it to you."

Gibbs looked pleased.

"If you let me into the secret of getting those boats out of the basement!"

"In your dreams, Tony, in your dreams!"

"Semper fi, Boss, semper fi."

They clicked their beer bottles and settled down to watch the flames dancing in Gibbs' fireplace. The world had stopped shaking and seemed full of possibilities.

AN: I didn't intend to disband the whole team when I started this but it just happened! Thank you to everyone who had reviewed, followed or favorited the story. I have now put the characters back in their (unretired) NCIS box.