Nurture Versus Nature

Before Gibbs could think of a further defense Tony's voice interrupted. The young man had evidently begun singing as he started to jog down the stairs, and they listened as the timbre of his voice changed with each step. Once on the ground floor he made a dramatic entrance before them, clutching his hands to his heart as he flung himself with a noisy flop onto the sofa beside Sister Rosita.

He leaned over and kissed the Nun's cheek. "That Grammy worthy performance was all for you, my Sister Rosita."

She laughed delightedly and playfully popped his leg.

Tony leaned over her, snapped a mock salute, and handed Gibbs a thermometer. "Here you go, Commandant Boss, and your glasses are in your shirt pocket."

Jethro glared at him, but pulled his glasses out to examine the thermometer's reading.

The kindly woman studied Tony with concern. "I did not realize you were sick, Tony. My goodness, I think you look pretty healthy, but that just proves that looks certainly can deceive."

Tony's face instantly lit at the possibility of an ally to his current mission. "Well, that is quite all right, Sister, and allow me to assure you that you did not err whatsoever! The indisputable fact is that I am not ill. On the contrary, I have been completely well for the past few days, but one of us in this living room is way overprotective and refuses to believe or accept that fact."

He pointed in Jethro's direction.

"Talk to the head honcho there for me, please, Sister, and assure him that you view me as healthy and robust. Though he takes no stock in my words, he certainly respects you."

Gibbs glanced dismissively at Tony and then shook the thermometer before motioning his protégé.

When Tony obediently leaned forward Gibbs slid the thermometer under his tongue with a warning, "Keep quiet and your mouth closed until I signal you. You can plead your case to enlist the Sister's aid after I get the temperature reading from you. By the way, I saw a load of towels in the laundry room that needs folding and putting in the linen closet."

"Laundry is not my responsibility this week, Boss, it is Baby Girl's." Closing his eyes, Tony interlaced his fingers behind his head and rested his head against the sofa back. He plastered an angelic look on his face.

Gibbs winked conspiratorially at his guest. "His claims of mistreatment stem from the fact that he just recovered from a virus, along with the fact that I refuse to let him resume normal activities until he has remained fever free for a minimum of three days. Tonight constitutes that third day, as he has so vocally reminded me numerous times since breakfast."

Tony batted his eyelashes at the explanation and Sister Rosita laughed merrily. "That does not sound too ridiculous a requirement, Agent Gibbs, especially for someone who survived a bout of the plague. I do believe I am in your corner with this issue."

"No, no it is far from absurd," Jethro agreed. Then narrowing his eyes at the younger man he continued, "Sadly, I have learned that I can not trust Tony, or his partner in crime, Abby, for that matter, to give me an honest reading off of a thermometer when I ask one of them."

Tony shrugged his shoulders as though bewildered, opened his eyes in shock, then plastered an innocent expression across his face.

"Now, thanks to prior disappointing experiences, I only trust my personal first hand interpretation."

The Nun pretended shock. "You can not possibly mean that either would try to change the actual gauging of the temperature on the thermometer?"

"Shocking, isn't it?" Gibbs agreed. "Imagine how disappointing it is to me that two adults can not be trusted to relay an honest reading when I ask them for one."

Tony pointed frantically to the thermometer between his lips and Jethro checked his watch and motioned the younger man to lean forward once again. Jethro pulled out the thermometer with one hand, but used the other to place an appraising palm against Dinozzo's forehead.

Surprisingly, Tony stayed still and quiet.

Satisfied that Tony felt cool and without a raised temperature, Jethro narrowed his eyes at the temperature reading and then met his gaze. "Ok, you're good to go this evening."

Tony leapt up and began to dance around the room, causing Sister Rosita to laugh delightedly.

Gibbs did not hide his own grin.

The entertainer managed to dramatically sing a verse of Night Fever to compliment his footwork before Gibbs finally shooed him upstairs.

They heard Abby descending the stairs and passing the young man as Tony made his way back up to his room.

"One down and one to go now," Jethro assured Sister Rosita, pointing towards the living room doorway.

Abby bounced into the room as if on cue, twirling one pigtail, and plopped down beside the Nun as Tony had done. She leaned over to kiss Sister Rosita's cheek, then addressed Gibbs. "Ok, now even though you have already met Alexander before, and Tony has met him, too, I told him he had to come inside, again, and let you see him."

With that information conveyed, she puffed her lips into a pout. "Even though Alexander has done nothing wrong except want to take me to a movie, he gets subjected to an inquisition."

Watching her, Gibbs took another sip of coffee and settled back in his chair before responding. "You know this is an ironclad house rule, Abbs. Either Tony or I need to clear your date before I allow you out that door alone with him, and…"

She interrupted, "It embarrasses me to have to drag my dates to you or Tony. They understand they are lambs to the slaughter."

Gibbs ignored the petulance, "Further, you know very well that you have a choice in the matter. You may choose the alternative, and you and he can stay comfortably right here in the living room for the evening."

"I know, I got it, ok? I'm just telling Sister Rosita that it's unnecessary to criminally check anyone who just wants to take me out to dinner."

The Nun laughed at that. "No one needs to explain. I can figure the background to this one, Abby."

Gibbs raised his eyebrows. "Did you come down to complain about rules, Abby, or was there another motive?"

Abby brightened, then jumped up and twirled, allowing the rhinestones on her black and white checked skirt to flash in the swirling light. "Another motive- do you approve?"

She stopped suddenly and stood motionlessly while she waited for a response.

Gibbs reassured her, "The outfit's fine, Abby, I have no problem with you going out in that one."

She ran over and kissed his cheek, then kissed Sister Rosita, also.

Before she could hurry back up the steps Gibbs ordered, "Hey, you have a load of laundry waiting for your attention."

Abby paused in the doorway and wrinkled her nose in annoyance. "I'll get it later. I still have to finish getting ready."

"No, deal with it now," Gibbs contradicted, pointing opposite the stairs and towards the laundry room.

Sighing dramatically, Abby headed to the chore.

When silence finally enveloped the living room Sister Rosita addressed Gibbs, "Now, pray continue with your argument, Agent Gibbs. You were in the midst of assuring me that Tony and Abby do not view you as a father figure, nor do you see them as your family or responsibility. Please elaborate on that for me, the part about the three of you not being a family."

Gibbs looked sheepish, and then grinned at the Nun.