ENVIOUS COMRADES

Author's Note: Please Review!

Disclaimer: None of the characters belong to me.

Summary: Ziva and McGee begin to feel that even though Abby is thought to be Gibbs's favourite, Gibbs often favours Tony over them and a jealousy arouses. Will Gibbs be able to clear the misunderstanding or is there some truth behind the envy? Will everything to back to normal or will Team Gibbs crumble under a burden of resentment?

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Chapter 1: David's Destructive Day

Ziva David was infuriated!

For the first time in twelve years, Ziva had overslept. She had then spilled coffee onto her shirt, further delaying her. Thus, she had had to skip breakfast in her haste to arrive to work on time. To make her day worse, her cavity had chosen today to go from mildly stinging to excruciatingly painful and the fact that she could not find a single lead on this case wasn't helping much.

She had spent the past two hours, trying to ignore the throbbing pain in her left molar, with nothing to show for it except a rapid decline of her mood. Furthermore, Tony wasn't himself today. When she had arrived at the bullpen, fifteen minutes late, she had expected Tony to mock her with jibes like "Miss Perfect ain't so perfect" or "Look whose finally here, late night? Hot date?" However, Tony hadn't even spared her a glance, working diligently at his desk as if he hadn't even noticed her arrival. Throughout the day, Tony had not said any word that wasn't directly related to the case; no jokes aimed at McGee, no sharing the unwanted and unnecessary details of how his weekend had gone, not even a movie reference. At first, Ziva had welcomed the new change in Tony's attitude as a gift from God but had soon realised that Tony's endless chatter would have distracted her from her painful toothache and perhaps improved her mood as well. The one day that Tony's babbling could be of use to her, he had to give it a break!

Ziva continued to rant in her mind, paying half an ear to Gibbs's lecture whilst McGee paid rapt attention to detail and DiNozzo seemed to be focusing to Ziva's unsuspecting gaze. "Lieutenant Joe Hawkes was on a thirty-day leave…" Seriously it is as if Tony is mocking me. After the countless times I have complained about his non-stop banter, annoying movie quotes and childish jokes, the day that they may have given me a source of distraction, he decides to adhere to my wishes. "He had the same stab wounds as the drug dealer Larry Miller who was found two days ago at…" Of all the days for my tooth to betray me, why did it have to be today? After years of Mossad training, how is it that I cannot tolerate an aching cavity… Snapping out of her reverie just in time to hear Gibbs bark out an order for her to find a link between the drug dealer and the dead marine, Ziva quipped an "On it" right on cue.

"McGee, check whether Hawkes had a drug problem," Gibbs said.

"Got it, boss," McGee replied, already typing diligently on his keyboard.

"DiNozzo, interview his colleagues."

Upon receiving no response from Tony, Gibbs called out "DiNozzo" but received no reply once more; Tony seemed to be daydreaming. Ziva closed her eyes briefly, anticipating the searing head slap and sharp rebuke in her partner's future. However, her eyes flew open when Gibbs called out loudly, yet with a concerned tone, "Tony, you okay?"

"Huh? Oh…yes boss. Sorry Boss. I'm on it." Tony then walked out of the bullpen, shoulders slumped. Probably feeling embarrassed at getting caught day dreaming about an undoubtedly hot date.

So focused was she in her own problems that Ziva had not spared a single thought to the source of Tony's out of character behaviour. McGee had asked Tony about it, but after receiving a rare deathly glare and a recommendation to get back to work, he had dropped the topic.

After spending an hour and a half trying to find a connection between the dead marine Lieutenant Joe Hawkes and a drug dealer Larry Miller with no success, Ziva decided to give up for the day, head over to the dentist appointment that she had told Gibbs about last week and perhaps tomorrow, with a fresh mind and lifted spirits, she'd have better luck. Making up her mind, she rose from her desk, exiting the bullpen, only to be stopped by Gibbs voice calling out "Where do you think you're going? Did you get a lead?"

Ziva had suspected that Gibbs would forget and had been prepared. "I am headed out to the dentist appointment that I told you about last week. Remember?"

To Ziva's utter dismay and growing irritation, Gibbs barked "Oh, no, you aren't. This case is important. Your teeth can wait." At Ziva's lack of movement, Gibbs snarled "Unless you have a heart attack, you aren't going anywhere. Get back to work. You too, McGee." Gibbs said, directing his head towards the junior agent that had stopped typing to listen in on what was happening at his boss's desk. "Yes, boss," McGee replied meekly. Ziva on the other hand, was anything but ashamed. In fact, she was furious. Her tooth was killing her and she had asked Jenny for the day off and had informed Gibbs about the appointment beforehand. Yet, he was refusing to let her go. It was so unfair, just because Tony had misused his trust and faked dentist appointments to meet up with his girlfriend, Jeanne, didn't mean that she would too.

However, knowing when to give up, Ziva said no more and stomped over to her desk, plopping onto her chair with an irritated huff that an equally frustrated Gibbs decided to ignore in a rare bout of sympathy. If any of the boys had shown half of the attitude that Ziva just had, he would have chewed them out but Ziva was stubborn and Gibbs wasn't in the mood to pick a fight.

After about ten minutes or so of staring at her computer, willing her temper to calm down, Ziva found a lead. "Gibbs, the wife had a drug problem and was charged ten years ago for possession. Guess who her source was?"

"Larry," Gibbs supplied.

Her mood finally slightly lifting, she nodded enthusiastically. May be some field work would keep her mind off the aching in her tooth.

"Alright, go pick her up. Take McGee."

As Ziva and McGee headed out of the bullpen, Tony returned from interviewing Hawkes' colleagues and for the first time that day, Ziva got a good look at him; Tony was slightly pale, his eyes dazed and instead of the playboy grin, a slight frown creased his face as he walked over to Gibbs's desk and asked quietly "Hey boss, umm…. can I…umm…can I have the day off today?"

Feeling bad for Tony and well aware of the mood that Gibbs was in, Ziva opened her mouth to intervene before Gibbs could berate Tony as he had done her moments ago, frankly Tony didn't look like he could take it today, but before a single word could escape her mouth, Gibbs spoke, in a surprisingly gentle voice "Sure. Go ahead."

In his haste to leave the building before Gibbs changed his mind, Tony failed to notice a gobsmacked Ziva observing the scene with growing outrage.

After overcoming her initial shock at both Gibbs's tone and the answer, Ziva seethed silently all the way to the wife's home and back.

How could Gibbs just let Tony take the day off with no excuse, no previous notice and a history of faking doctor and dentist appointments to see Jeanne when he had, quite harshly, refused to let me go to a scheduled dentist appointment!

Gibbs may cut Abby leeway every now and then, but at this moment Gibbs is definitely favouring Tony over me.

It isn't fair!