Title: Rewards and Punishments
Authors: Chirugal and Cassy
Rating: NC17 –first chapter is PG, but it’ll turn NC17 soon-
Pairing: Gibbs/Abby
Spoilers: Expect spoilers up to date, story starts roughly in the middle of 6.06 (Murder 2.0)
Warnings: WIP, first person narrator - shifts in POV, D/s, other warnings will be added as the story proceeds.

Author's Note: This is too much fun to write! It's a joint fic - Chirugal is writing Abby, and Cassy's writing Gibbs. Every section marked with a hyphen is a shift in perspective. It might be a little confusing - if so, please say so and we'll look at a rewrite.

I sit in the lobby, my feet tapping impatiently as I gaze toward the elevator. I'm in plain sight of three security guys, so I know I'm in no danger of featuring in any more amateur movies, but I just want to go home – well, Gibbs’ place – and forget this whole thing.

I know he’s getting ready to leave, because when things go wrong and there are no leads to follow up on, the first thing he does is head home to work on his boat. And after seeing a man die right in front of him, I doubt he’ll remember his promise to me.

The elevator doors open, and I glance over, jumping up when Gibbs steps into my view. Everything about him radiates frustration at the way the case is going, but I know that if I distract him he’ll calm down a little. “Hey, Gibbs…”

-

I’m grateful that I’m almost too tired to think at this point. My mind feels numb and this guy is starting to remind me of dirtbags like Kyle Boone and Ari Haswari. Well planned, cruel and… personal. He’s targeting me, and he knows how to get to me more than I’d care to admit.

But even I know that I can’t catch the bastard yet. If we were closer to him, Ducky wouldn’t have another dead body on his table. The bastard murdered a guy right in front of me, and I couldn’t do a thing. Twice I watched him murder someone, once taped, once eye to eye. And once he scared Abby so badly she wanted to go home to...

“Hey, Gibbs...”

I almost forgot about her, but I offer her a grim smile anyway. “Hey, Abbs.” I want to tell her that she should just have gone home, relaxed. But I’m glad she didn’t. Because she has a point – until that bastard’s locked away I don’t want her home alone. I’ve had enough of people stalking her and threatening to kill her. But I’m not sure if she should be at my place while this guy is so focused on me. “Should have gone home with Ziva.”

-

He's as abrupt as I figured he would be, and I punch his shoulder lightly as I fall into step beside him. "You thought I was gonna leave you by yourself?" I ask, keeping my tone casual. He frowns over at me, and I elaborate. "I heard what happened."

-

I raise a brow at her punch but I’m not surprised at her words - scuttlebutt travels fast at NCIS. And I’m not going to correct her, because telling her that I’m currently worried about her safety around me would only scare her. I can't think of a better solution than taking her home with me. Leaving her to go home alone definitely isn’t an option.

“I didn’t think you would, Abby. But if I wanted my head shrunk I’d ask Ducky.”

She keeps following me and I unlock my car when we get there.

“Need anything from your place?”

-

I hold up my bag, shaking my head. “I always keep a few things in the lab in case of all-nighters. I’m good for tonight.”

-

“Didn’t know you joined the girl scouts, Abbs,” I can’t help teasing. “Been spending too much time with McGee again?”

-

I grin, relieved that he seems to be lightening up a little. "No. Though I think I'd look better in the Scoutmaster uniform than he does."

-

“You could borrow it and find out.” I shrug, focusing on the road when I’m tempted to look at her instead. I don’t need to look at her or see her wear the uniform to know she would. She’s the only woman I’ve met who can wear a monkey suit and still look…

The road.

-

I focus my attention on the familiar scenery, trying not to let my imagination run away with me. Sometimes, the things he says almost make me believe that he… But no. Don’t even go there, Abigail. Not when he’s here, anyway.

I can’t resist kidding around a little, though. “Kinky, Gibbs! Very kinky…”

-

“Right.” I shake my head at her, trying to get rid of the images her words conjured. Now is not the time or the place, and Abby is not a girl I would have casual sex with. I fall into silence and that seems to discourage her. Good. Discussing fetishes and kinks with her isn’t something I’m willing to do while her life might be at risk.

Keeping my face unreadable I finally stop the car, grab my stuff and get out, waiting for Abby to get her own before I lock the car.

-

Suppressing a sigh, I follow him into the house. I really gotta stop getting my hopes up. I mean, could his reaction have been any more discouraging? Then again, we are in the middle of a really gruesome case.

Just thinking about it makes me shudder. “Gibbs? Why do you think this guy’s fixating on you?”

-

“I don’t know, Abbs.” I run my hand through my hair and rub my eyes. “If I had a proper clue who’s behind this I’d be at work trying to brick the guy.” So he can’t harm you, my mind helpfully adds to frustrate me further.

When she’s inside I make a point of locking the door properly. “Stay away from windows.” I caution her, going upstairs to prepare the guest room.

-

Wow, locking the doors. Things must be serious. I wander through to the kitchen and put some coffee on to filter, stepping out of window-range as soon as I can.

While I wait for him to come downstairs, I look through my overnight bag, realising that the last time I packed it I was expecting to go straight to Simon’s place, back when we were casually dating. The nightdresses I usually pack have been replaced with my usual cami-and-panties ensemble. Oops.

At least I still have my toothbrush, though.

-

When her room is ready I go back downstairs and pick up the scent of freshly brewed coffee. Usually I’d be pleased that she feels at home, but tonight that’s not my main concern.

“I told you to stay away from the windows, Abby. If you want me to keep you safe you don’t take risks, understood?”

-

Awww… He’s worried about me. Though that doesn’t change the fact that he’s definitely not a happy camper right now. And I get the feeling that arguing won’t do me much good right now. There’s a reason I asked if I could come here with him, and that’s cause I’m in danger. I should start listening to him.

“Sorry. I just thought you could use the coffee after what happened.”

-

“I thought you realized that your safety meant more to me than coffee.”

I grit my teeth when I realize that I’m yelling at her. That rarely works with Abby, and it’s too late anyway. Now it just matters that she doesn’t do it again, and I know she doesn’t repeat her mistakes. Making an effort to calm down, I point up.

“Go upstairs. I’ll get the coffee when it’s done.”

-

I nod, feeling a little stung, and head for the stairs. I know he’s just concerned for me, and he is trying to keep his temper, but I hate it when Gibbs is angry with me. He doesn’t seem to get how much he means to me, and sometimes that hurts. Although, if he knew exactly how much he does mean…

Dropping my bag on the bed, I stretch out on the mattress, careful to stay below the window-ledge. It’s warm and comforting, and I stay that way, letting my thoughts drift, until I hear Gibbs’ footfalls on the stairs.

-

She looks hurt when she shuffles upstairs, but in situations like these her safety matters more than her sensibilities. Trying not to worry too much, I wait until the coffee is done, grab our cups and head upstairs, following her.

“Are you decent, Abbs?”

-

For a second I consider saying no, wondering what kind of a reaction I’d get, but I decide against it. Now isn’t the time. “Yeah,” I call, raising myself up on an elbow as he appears in the doorway.

-

I am not disappointed about her lack of teasing. It’s not the time for it anyway. But Abby sometimes… well, not now.

“Abby.”

Glancing down at the cups, I check which one I brought for her and offer it to her.

-

When I take the cup from him, our fingers brush against each other, just for a second. The skin tingles, and I concentrate on the coffee, taking a sip. “Thanks.”

-

“Thank you,” I correct her. She disobeyed my order, but she’s still the one who made it.

A girl like Abby probably shouldn’t drink coffee this late at night unless she’s supposed to stay awake. But I’ll drink my own and I’m not having a discussion with her on this topic now. She stopped caffeine for a while when I told her it wasn’t good for her, but then kept bringing it up until I relented.

-

He sits on the bed beside me, and we drink our coffee in silence for a moment. I glance across at him, watching him stare into his mug, and ask, “Are you okay?”

-

“Yeah.” Could be better. But I’m not telling her that I’m worried about her, because she’d freak out, and I don’t want her drunk in my basement, trying to set my boat on fire. “We’ll catch that bastard, and then we’ll brick him or hand him over to Ducky.”

-

“I know you will.” If there’s anyone who can do this, it’s Gibbs. I’ve never seen him come across a case he can’t deal with. Even if he gets hurt in the process. Oh, god, what if he gets hurt? “Just… be careful.”

-

“I will be, don’t worry.” If I told her that I intend to do whatever it takes to bring in that bastard, she’d only fret, and I don’t want her to. I empty my cup, and one glance tells me hers is finished too. It’s time to get some sleep, before I start wondering if she’ll sleep naked or wear her funeral gown.

“Night, Abbs.” I kiss her head.

-

“Night, Gibbs.”

I watch him leave, closing the door behind him, and let out my breath in a sigh. Sitting on a bed with him, having him kiss my head… even with the danger we’re in it makes me hot. Hmmm, maybe the danger makes it even hotter… Oh, just stop, Abby. Get changed, go brush your teeth, go to sleep, stop wishing for something you can’t have…