Work Text:
Making A Change
Frustrated and in pain, Timothy McGee climbed to the roof of his apartment building in a vain attempt to escape the nightmares that haunted him. He didn’t know which was worse: the memories of the recent attack by the dog which currently shared his apartment or the memories of a year no one on the team but him remembered. A soft sigh escaped him as he crossed the roof to the surrounding ledge. Awkwardly, he climbed up to perch on the ledge, leaning back to rest against the slightly higher brickwork of the corner. Stretching one leg out in front of him, Tim rested his injured arm in his lap while bringing the other leg up. Draping his good arm around it, he stared out into the darkness wondering if the man he signed his life over to during that erased year would keep his promise to return for him.
He sat there, listening to the traffic below, and tried not to think. He hated being on medical leave as it gave him far too much time to do just that… think. Tim dropped his head back against the higher bricks behind him. He stared up at the stars concealed behind the DC smog. He let his eyes mostly close as pieces of that year drifted through his mind.
Oh my God! Timmy! Did you hear? Real aliens! Here!
You’re not the Master. We like the Mister Master. We don’t like you.
I’m taking control Uncle Sam. Starting with you. Kill him.
What the hell! Boss! Did you see… Ow! Shutting up, boss.
Laser screwdriver… who’d have sonic?
MTAC! Now! Abby, go… don’t stand around… go… MTAC’s the most secure part of the building. Move!
McGee! What are you doing? McGee!
Making a deal!
A shudder raced through him as he remembered the deal he’d made to save his friends lives amongst the chaos which was the first hours after the takeover. He was one of the best, if not the best, computer hackers in the world so he offered his services in exchange for their lives, the betrayal in their eyes worth the knowledge that they’d live through the disaster.
McGee shook his head again. It still disturbed him, in the darkest hours of the night, just how attached he’d gotten to that psychopath, although he understood exactly how it happened. It terrified him that he missed the psychopath too. That strange ache in his mind was part of what drove him to sit on rooftops in the middle of the night when the nightmares overwhelmed him. He closed his eyes and attempted to force the memories back into the depths of his mind.
Fingers brushed along his temple as a subtle touch nudged against his mind. He purred in unconscious reaction to both touches. “Master….” A low wicked chuckle escaped the man touching him. It wasn’t the voice he was familiar with. Tim jerked, too startled to consider the drop waiting a few inches away, and twisted to face the stranger behind him.
“So you’re the Companion.”
Tim surveyed the man leaning against the column. Dark dusty jeans tucked into knee high leather boots paired with a very grungy t-shirt that McGee suspected had started life out white worn beneath a Napoleonic era military jacket. The gun holsters draped around his waist looked like they escaped from one of Tony’s old Westerns while the guns themselves looked like something from a futuristic R&D department. The katana just added to the confusing image of the man. Part of him wanted to hide from the man’s too knowing gaze, while the rest of him itched for his gun. Not that he could hold the SIG at the moment but damn did he want the weapon in his hand. “And if I am?”
“Wanted to be certain I had the right sorry bastard.”
Tim just shook his head and looked back out over the city again. He couldn’t argue with that assessment. He was indeed a sorry bastard to be wishing for rescue by a psychopath rather than confronting his teammates over the crap they put him through lately. “You don’t have to tell me that. I know all too well what I am.”
“Do you?” The other man reached over and grabbed his chin. A hard jerk forced him to look at him. “You’re the Companion of a man who nearly destroyed the Earth. You’re the Companion of a genocidal maniac who thinks nothing of torturing someone every day for a year. Drove his wife insane with abuse.”
“Don’t you think I know that!” Tim snapped the words even as he jerked out of the man’s hold. “I was there! I know what he’s capable of. It doesn’t mean that I don’t have feelings of my own or that I completely stopped caring just because I am his Companion.” He stopped and struggled to calm himself down again. “Nor does it mean he’s completely insane.”
“Really? You were there. On the Valiant?” Pure disbelief colored the man’s voice as he spoke. “You saw all that and you were okay with it as long as he bedded you?”
“I never said he bedded me! I said I was there. I know what he’s capable of… ” Tim trailed off and shook his head. He knew all too well what the Master was capable of from long conversations during late night watches. “And what he’ll do if asked nicely.”
“Wonderful.” Sarcasm dripped from the word. “So you kissed his ass every time you felt like being a hero.”
“I made a deal. I knew he needed someone with my skills and I made a deal.” Tim looked back out over the city again. “Though sometimes I really regret doing so.”
“Don’t lie to a liar, kid.” The man chuckled. A hand stroked over Tim’s hair. He leaned into the touch for a moment, just savoring the idle caress, before jerking away again. “You felt good being loved by someone so powerful. It made you feel powerful yourself. So you made a deal. Jack was still tortured to death every day for a year. Millions of people died. And that’s only his latest trick.”
“Have you seen any of the cases we deal with? The crap I put up with every day which is ignored by those who should handle it. Wouldn’t you feel good if someone paid attention to you?” Tim shook his head. He shifted around on the ledge until he could drop down to stand on the roof. “And I know. He told me. He took great pride in telling me what he’d done.”
“So you had a tough life. Your daddy didn’t love you and your momma didn’t protect you.” A mock sniffle came from the other man. “Poor you.”
“I just got attacked by a doped up drug dog. Yet do I get any sympathy for it? No, of course not. I just get bitched out for shooting the animal to save my life. My supposed partner treats it like some kind of elaborate joke. Now I have you bitching me out for wondering if the Master is going to keep his promise to come find me now that things are over.”
“Life’s a bitch, kid.” The other man leaned a shoulder against the corner bricks. “So tell me, do you know how being drowned feels? And then coming back to life to be torn apart by dogs? Crucifixion? Burning?” A hard stare was turned on him. “Your beloved Master did that and more to mine, you little prick. And all you have to say is that your feelings were hurt?”
“My feelings got hurt…” Tim repeated the words in disbelief. Did this bastard really know just how deep the pain ran some days? “Fuck but you remind me of DiNozzo. I’m just supposed to be the geek in the corner. ‘Do the searches, McGeek.’ Or maybe you’d prefer to be compared to Abby. ‘He’s just a sweet little puppy. Bad McGee.’ Gibbs just glares, slaps or ignores me while Ziva backs up Tony’s jokes.” He twisted about to glare at the man sharing his rooftop. “Why in the fuck do I bother anymore?”
“Bullshit.” The word was a singular flat statement. “You can kick ass when you want to. You could take DiNozzo with one hand tied behind your back.” The man prowled toward him until he stood directly before him. A smirk curved his lips. “You could have spit in Gibbs’s eye and then walked away. You could fight back. Instead you ran to one of the most evil beings to ever grace the galaxy because he patted you on the head and smiled at you.”
“And go to what?” Tim didn’t bother to hide his contempt for the idea that he could walk away from the team. “Walking away from Gibbs’s team is admitting failure. McGees don’t fail! I’ve had that drummed into my head all my life.” He turned away from the other man. “The Major Crimes Response Team is the team in the agency. Anything else is a demotion. I don’t have a choice. And Gibbs refuses to listen to any complaints against his favorites!”
“Then Gibbs isn’t the leader you thought he was and the team is a farce which will fall apart at the smallest pressure.” Tim’s companion came to join him by the roof ledge. “Question is, do you have the balls to apply it?”
“I’ve learned that Gibbs isn’t what I thought he was. His reputation doesn’t match his actions.” Tim sighed tiredly. This argument just dredged up all his doubts about himself and his place on the team. He felt trapped yet had no escape. Maybe that was why he made that deal with the devil disguised as the Master. “Just what are you suggesting? For that matter, who the hell are you anyway?”
“Let’s just say that you remind me of someone. Not who you are now, but who you could be.” The man surveyed Tim for a moment and smirked. “Besides, you’re not bad eye-candy.”
“Oh, don’t you start.” Tim growled softly. “I get enough crap from Tony.”
“All right, all right.” The other man raised his hands in the universal sign of surrender. “Though why you twenty-first century men have such a hard time dealing with your sexuality is beyond me. The thing is, kid, I think you’re not reading Gibbs very well.”
“I didn’t say I had a hard time with my sexuality. I said don’t start. I’m really sick of being teased for giving a damn about my appearance and not wanting to talk in detail about every encounter I’ve had in my life.” Tim shoved his good hand through his hair. “As for Gibbs, he’s nearly impossible to read, but it’s common knowledge that Abby’s his favorite and can do no wrong. Trust me, I’ve had that proven to me several times already. And Tony’s his heir apparent, even gotten his practice time in as team leader already, so he too isn’t reined in.” Tim tilted his head to one side and considered the other man. “Is it any wonder I reacted the way I did to praise? Even if it was from a psychopath?”
“Kid, get the wool out of your ears. I said you’re misreading Gibbs. You wanna hear my take or not?”
“Why not? Not like I’ve got anything else to do at the moment.”
“Gibbs is the kind of man who believes in the tough love bullshit. He’s waiting for you to take charge of your own defense. He wants to see what you can do.”
“Is that so?” Tim didn’t even try to hide his disbelief as he glanced over at the other man.
“You don’t have to believe me. Just try it. What do you have to lose?”
“My job.” With the nearing demise of his writing career unless he finally finished the long delayed Rock Hollow, the job was all he had left. Tim couldn’t even manage to find a lover anymore unless the person was insane, an assassin or another kind of criminal. He’d given up on having a relationship. It wasn’t worth the trouble. “And if I upset Abby again, possibly my life.”
“So that scares you more than going through life as a victim? Or the consort of a mass murderer.?”
“I’d definitely rather not be dead, thank you very much.” Tim glared over at his companion. “And I told you, I never slept with him.”
“Vortex help us. I give up. First, if that bitch scares you that much, you have no business doing anything but writing your novels from the safety of a bunker. And if you go with him, you’ll end up in his bed. Or didn’t you notice how he looked at you.”
“Look, let me explain something to you.” Tim shifted about so he could rest his hip against the roof ledge. “Abby is Gibbs substitute daughter. She breaks the rules. She ignored what I said to her. And who gets punished? Me. Even when I tried to explain, she turned the innocent puppy-dog look on Gibbs who shot me down. I got the punishment instead. I learned my lesson with regard to Abby. You don’t upset her. You don’t anger her. It’s not worth the expense to my dignity.”
“So, go off with the Master. Become his pet and hope you can change him. Worked so well for the previous one. She ended her days in a mental institution screaming at the walls.” The other man leaned closer to Tim. “You just don’t have the balls to tell Gibbs off and make it stick.”
“You want me to tell Gibbs where to stick it? To tell him off? To what….” Tim looked around the rooftop for a moment before refocusing on the man standing beside him. He turned to face the man completely and started stalking closer to him. “Throw him off this roof the way I’ve been wanting to toss you off for the last few minutes? I’m the junior agent computer geek. I’m not the Mossad trained assassin or the retired Marine sniper. I’m not even the streetwise ex-cop. I’m the geek! Or haven’t you noticed that? I get told it often enough by everyone.” He flattened the palm of his good hand against the other man’s chest. “I’m not even considered enough of a member of the team to get any lessons in how not to get hurt!”
Tim stood there panting. He blinked a couple of times in shocked surprise. It wasn’t until he ranted at this man – who he was sure he shouldn’t be discussing any of this with in the first place – just how much he resented his position on the team. He swallowed hard, blinked again, and stared at the other man as the smirk on his face deepened.
“Kid, the difference between a geek and a killer is the training to use your strengths to your own advantage.” His hand came up and lifted Tim’s off his chest. “And don’t try physical intimidation with me. I was trained by the best.”
“So…” Tim tilted his head in silent demand for more details before deciding questions might be better. “What? I hate this. I hate the damned situation but I have yet to see a way to change it. And those books you talked about… I stopped writing them after my teammates tried to kill me for the last one.”
“Like I said, you’re problem is that you don’t know how to take advantage of your strengths.” A glare was turned on him. “And that was stupid of you. They’re good books.”
“So, suggestions?” Tim just barely smiled at the compliment. “And thanks, I think.”
“Let’s take it in stages. You have two choices at the moment, kid. You can ally yourself with those who want to bring Gibbs down. There’s plenty of them at NCIS.” A hand was raised before Tim could even form a protest. He might not be happy with the situation he was in but he wasn’t going to go against his team leader either. “Or you can realize that there are ways to earn his respect.”
“Explain.” Tim absently crossed his arms and yelped in pain when he put pressure on his infected dog bites. He shifted to cradle is left arm in his right hand. “Ow, fuck…”
“You need to learn a few things, kid. How much time do you have?”
“Technically, I’m on medical leave until I can pass my firearms qualification again. Though I’m supposed to be on desk duty the whole time.” Tim sucked in a breath, held it, and then released it in an attempt to ease the pain he was in. “I figured the Master would show up, I could go off with him and heal up.”
“Well, there’s a place at a certain Agency training center with your name on it.”
“Excuse me?”
“Simple, kid. You were told so often you weren’t good enough at certain things that you accepted it without question and threw all your efforts into developing your mind. Good enough for then, but not for now. You need to relearn a lot of things about yourself, things you knew before you were beaten down.” Again that knowing smirk was turned on him. “In addition to learning a lot of dirty tricks.”
Tim took a step back in order to sit on the roof ledge again. As he saw it, he had three choices at the moment. He could continue with the status quo – being the geek who was the target of Tony’s jokes and Abby’s scapegoat. Or he could continue to hope that a madman would return and take him away – and yeah, he’d end up in the man’s bed eventually, he’d not been oblivious to the looks no matter what he claimed. Or he could take the chance this stranger was offering him. His gut – which the team ignored for the most part – screamed at him to take the third option.
“Fuck it.” Tim quirked a small grin at the other man. “You can get me back here tomorrow in time for work?”
“You’re going away for at least three years, kid.” The smirk became a smile, as if this was the choice hoped for but not one the man could coerce him into taking. “And you’ll be back by tomorrow morning.”
“Time travel. I should have known.” Tim looked around the roof before looking back at his companion. “So, not a Tardis. What are we using?”
“You’ll find out soon enough.” The man crossed his arms, his fingers playing with the edge of one cuff. “You in, kid?”
“Stop calling me kid.” Tim nodded his agreement. “Yeah, but do you have a name, you annoying bastard.”
“John Hart.” The man crossed over to stand in front of him. One hand reached out and brushed back Tim’s hair again. “But you can still call me Master, if that makes you happy.”
“Can it. I’ll call you DiNozzo instead. You act just like him. Well, minus some of the flirting.” Tim shrugged one shoulder. “You know I thought you were him. He’d do that to me when he wanted my attention.”
“I know. He’s…” Hart trailed off. He looked up at the sky for a moment before shaking his head. “He’s somewhere else now. He finally did something heroic, kid, and he paid the price willingly. Before he left, he managed to get a message to me. Asked me to take care of you.” The smirk returned to Hart’s face as if he couldn’t take anymore of the seriousness. “And don’t call me DiNozzo. He’s just an annoying prick. I’m a handsome, brilliant and annoying prick.”
“I knew he had it in him somewhere.” Tim smiled for a moment. He knew most people would look at him like he was insane but he’d seen a different side of the man who’d nearly destroyed the world. Long talks in the darkest hours of the night gave him the glimpse of a man craving help and acceptance. Those talks had been the reason why he’d agreed to some of the things he had during that year. Shaking off the memories, he focused on Hart. “I’ll let you know if you really are brilliant. I am a genius for this time at least.” He dropped off the wall and nodded to the man. “Let’s go then.”