Canter City, Massachusetts
Canterlot High School parking lot
====

Sunset Shimmer slung her backpack onto her shoulders and exited her sedan, taking a brief moment to enjoy the sunrise over Canter City. It had been barely a month since the Friendship Games, and Canter City was quiet for the first time in a long while.

Sunset had volunteered to help clean the High School's atrium as an extra credit opportunity, and as she approached the statue in front of the glass front doors, she gave a nod of approval at the portal to Equestria.

Then, she stepped in something wet. As she looked down and realized she stepped in a puddle, she rolled her eyes. Then she widened them upon realizing it hadn't rained at all recently. She looked around and knelt, eyeing the liquid cautiously.

As she dipped her finger in, she gasped upon seeing red liquid trickle down her hand, and realized what it was.

It was blood, and by the looks of it, it had been spilled recently.

As she cautiously followed the trail, pulling out her cell phone in the process and powering it up, she stopped upon reaching the source, and she screamed in horror.

Lying against the front doors was a man in green military fatigues, clutching a black crystalline needle in his leg. His dog tags lay nearby, covered in blood. Sunset rushed over and knelt down next to him, dialling 911 in the process.

"911." the operator chattered. "What's your emergency?"

"I need an ambulance right now!" Sunset cried as she yanked the crystal out and started putting pressure on the man's injury. "I'm at the front steps of Canterlot High School, there's a man with a stab wound in his leg!"

"Okay, Police and an ambulance are on the way. Stay with me, ma'am." the operator replied. As Sunset continued first aid, secretly using some healing magic in the process, she didn't read the dog tags laying nearby in a pool of blood.

Lance Corporal Thomas Grant
11-17-97, Christian, Baltimore, ML
United States Marine Corps,

====
Quantico, Virginia, NCIS HQ
Office Area
====

As the elevator gave a "ding!" and the doors opened, a middle-aged man with white hair, carrying a travel cup of coffee, entered the office area and proceeded to his desk. NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs set his coffee down and powered up his computer, eyeing the three empty cubicles belonging to Tony DiNozzo, Ziva David, and Tim McGee. He stretched, watching the computer's desktop appear.

"Good morning, Gibbs." Ziva said, sliding into view with a carton bearing three coffee cups, as usual. "Is there anything new?"

"Not really." Gibbs replied, taking a sip from his own coffee and then proceeding to open his email. "Nothing's popped up so far."

"Well, I'm happy to hear it." said DiNozzo as he and McGee walked in, casually plucking their coffee from Ziva's carton. "Maybe we'll have a non-chaotic day for a change."

Gibbs then suddenly closed his email and sighed loudly in disbelief and frustration, before he suddenly head-slapped DiNozzo, making Ziva and McGee chuckle.

"Gah! What was that for, boss?" DiNozzo grumbled as he rubbed the back of his head with his free hand, balancing his coffee and his bag with his other hand.

"You jinxed it, DiNozzo." Gibbs replied. "Grab your gear, we've got a Marine down in suburban Massachusetts, and they need us there right now. Ducky and Palmer are already waiting for us outside."

"Just brilliant." McGee said as the four agents entered the Elevator. "And everything was going so well for us, Tony."

"When did I become the scapegoat here?" Tony complained, only to receive another headslap from Gibbs.

"About two minutes ago." Gibbs replied with a smirk.

====

After an extended drive to Massachusetts, the NCIS team found themselves standing outside Canter City's local High School. The local Police had sealed the school and cordoned off the bloodstained area before the NCIS agents arrived. There were a few Police units speaking with onlookers, but for the most part the scene was quiet.

"Not a bad place to get an education." Tony said as they passed by the statue in front of the school. "Where's the victim?"

"Lance Corporal Thomas Grant is already at the local hospital's surgery wing, getting several stitches in his leg." Dr. Mallard said as he and Palmer approached with a tackle box full of medical equipment and tools. "The EMTs report that he had lost a copious amount of blood, but it could have been worse as he didn't remove the object in the wound."

"What kind of object are we referring to?" Gibbs asked as he observed the bloodstained area on the ground and wall of the school,

"A large, crystalline thorn, made from onyx or ebony-like material." Dr. Mallard said, offering the thorn in question, sealed within an evidence bag, to Tony. "Never seen anything like it before."

"Who found him?" Ziva asked.

"A student at the school who came in early. Her name is Sunset Shimmer, and she's being interviewed at the Police station here." McGee said, looking at his PDA. "Quite an interesting name."

"I'll say." Gibbs frowned. "Ziva, get photos of the scene. Tony, check for any cameras nearby. McGee, find out more info about our Lance Corporal. I'll speak with this Sunset Shimmer, see what she knows."

"Got it." Ziva replied.

"On it." Tony affirmed.

"Yes, Boss." McGee finished.

As Gibbs left and entered one of the NCIS team cars, before he headed downtown, he took a little time to admire the town atmosphere. A few stores, a bakery, boutique, an apple orchard, a park...it reminded Gibbs of his hometown when he was young.

He soon arrived at the Police Station, and was greeted by the local Captain, Shining Armor. After an exchange of IDs, Shining brought Gibbs to his office, where a girl of about seventeen, with red and yellow hair was waiting for him.

"Sunset Shimmer?" Gibbs asked.

"That's me." she replied.

"I'm Special Agent Gibbs, NCIS. I'd like to ask you some questions about this morning." Gibbs said as he sat down.

"Sure thing." Sunset replied. "What do you want to know?"

New story, commence!

Next time - Sunset's interview with Gibbs, and Lance Corporal Grant speaks with the team. And in Equestria, Princess Twilight Sparkle gets a shocking message...

As Gibbs and Sunset sat down and made themselves comfortable, Gibbs eyed Sunset with a raised eyebrow. For some reason, her skin color appeared to be a pale shade of yellow as he walked in, but now it was back to normal.

"Something wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing. So, how'd you find Lance Corporal Grant?" Gibbs asked.

"I was heading inside to clean the school atrium when when I noticed the blood. I came in early for some extra credit." she replied.

"And it was just you?"

"Well, any student can come in and do it, just that not many actually want to. They'd prefer to sleep." Sunset replied. "When I found him, I dialed 911 and did first aid, well, as much first aid as I could."

Gibbs nodded and interlaced his hands.

"And can anyone else confirm you were there?"

"Principal Celestia." she replied. "You have to sign up to come in early, she's got all the records. Plus the camera footage." Sunset replied. "After the Friendship Games, we had cameras put in."

"What happened?" Gibbs asked. "And what's the Friendship Games?"

"It's a big intramural athletics and motocross competition between Canterlot High and Crystal Prep Academy." Sunset said. "Let's just say some crazy, supernatural stuff happened and...well, the students on both sides just agreed to keep it quiet."

Gibbs perked an eyebrow. Whatever was happening or happened in this town, he wanted to know more.

"Tell me what happened," he said. "I'd very much like to know."

Sunset's expression tightened and she interlaced her hands.

"You won't believe me." she said. "Besides, I don't really know if I can trust you with this even if you do."

"And why is that?" Gibbs asked. "Even if I do believe everything that you tell me, there's no way to know for sure until you do. You can't make gains without taking risks."

Sunset relaxed slightly, but took in a deep breath.

"Can you promise me that what I tell you doesn't leave this room?" she asked. "And that you'll give me a fair chance to explain everything?"

"Deal." Gibbs nodded. Sunset exhaled slightly as Gibbs pulled out a digital recorder and powered it on.

"Start talking." he said firmly.

====

Meanwhile, at the Canter City Hospital, Tony and Ziva were interviewing Lance Corporal Grant, who lay in a hospital bed with a heavily bandaged leg.

"So, how'd this end up in your leg?" Tony asked, holding up the crystal thorn.

"Long story." Grant replied. "I was assigned here to open up a recruitment center. Last night I was taking a walk when I noticed lights coming from the High School. I headed over and saw a group of people wearing black standing by the statue. They didn't seem to know I was there, so I hid myself behind a car."

"After that?" Tony asked.

"I saw them open...some kind of portal." he said.

"Portal?" Ziva asked.

"Yeah, it was like something out of Stargate or some other sci-fi thing." Grant sighed. "This guy with piercing red eyes tumbled out. As they helped him up, I slipped and fell. They saw me, and the guy with the red eyes shot this into my leg before he knocked me out. Next thing I know I was bleeding in front of the school, and a student was patching me up."

"Are you sure you saw this?" Tony asked skeptically.

"Damn sure." Grant said. "I also overheard them talking about someone called Sombra, and that they were "Glad to finally meet face to face." Other than that, not much else."

"Thank you, Lance Corporal." Ziva said. "We'll let you get some rest."

As they exited the room and closed the door, Tony gave a sigh.

"I can't tell whether he's lying or not." he sighed. "A portal? Some guy named Sombra? You think he's lying?"

"I don't think he is." Ziva replied. "He was so sure of himself. And if he was lying, it was a pretty extravagant cover for something."

"That's because he isn't lying."

The two agents turned to see a man wearing a down vest and jeans approach and cross his arms. Ziva and Tony carefully eyed the sidearm holstered on his left side.

"Who are you?" Tony asked.

"My name is Eric McKenna." he said, producing a badge and Government ID. "I work for the United States Central Intelligence Agency, Crossroads Team."

"What's that?" Ziva asked.

"Classified for the moment." Eric replied. "I need to see Leroy Jethro Gibbs ASAP. It's a matter of national security on two fronts."

"He's interviewing someone downtown at the moment." Tony replied. "And what exactly do you mean "On two fronts?"

"That's also classified." Eric replied. "Look, I don't exactly have time to stand around and talk with you both. I need to see Agent Gibbs right now."

"What do you want to tell Gibbs that you can't tell us?" Ziva countered. Eric gave a sigh of frustration before the pulled out his phone and stepped aside, dialing a number.

"Hey, it's me. I'm at the hospital. NCIS isn't exactly being cooperative, Agent Gibbs is out of the picture at the moment, mind giving me some advice?...Oh, that figures. Look, I did exactly what you told me to do and say...fine. One more try. McKenna out."

Eric ended the call and looked away.

"I apologize for interfering with whatever you were doing here." he sad. "Can you at least tell me where Agent Gibbs is at?"

"He's at the Police station." Ziva replied. "You'll be going there, then?"

"Yeah." Eric replied. "Thank you for your time. I'll see you around."

Eric nodded and left the area, Ziva turning to Tony with a raised eyebrow.

"What does the CIA have to do with this?" she questioned.

"Dunno, but if he wants to speak with GIbbs, I'd rather not know." Tony replied. "Let's go see what McGee's up to with Ducky and Palmer. They should have something for us by now."

====

Back at the police station, Sunset had just finished her interview with Agents Gibbs. Gibbs, as Sunset expected, had listened the entire time she talked. Gibbs had also been surpisingly silent when Sunset used her magic to levitate her backpack into the chair beside him.

"So...what do you think?" Sunset asked as they exited the police station. "You haven't said anything for a while now, Agent Gibbs."

"Because I'm thinking of what comes next." Gibbs replied. "I appreciate what you've told and shown me so far, but I'm going to need a little more proof or some kind of corroboration."

Sunset gave a sigh as they approached Gibbs's car, and she pulled out her journal. Gibbs raised his eyebrows as she began writing.

"What's that for?" he asked.

"I'm geting you the proof you need." she replied with an unimpressed tone. "If you'd be so kind as to take me back to Canterlot High, we can go from there."

Gibbs merely motioned to his sedan. As they entered and Gibbs started the car, Gibbs's phone rang. Gibbs retrieved it and sighed.

"Yeah, DiNozzo?" he spoke.

"Hey, Boss." DiNozzo replied. "We just got visited at the hospital by a CIA Agent who's looking to speak with you. We sent him your way, but do you know what's going on?"

"Nope." Gibbs replied. "You sure he was CIA?"

"Had the badge and ID." DiNozzo replied. "Not sure what he needs, but he's looking for you."

Then, there was a knock on the driver side door window. Gibbs rolled it downwards to reveal Eric McKenna holding his CIA Badge and ID.

"He just found us, DiNozzo." Gibbs replied. "Meet up with McGee and everyone else. I'll get back to you later."

"Already on it, Boss."

Gibbs raised an eyebrow at Eric, who merely motioned to the backseat. Gibbs nodded and Eric entered the car, sitting behind Gibbs.

"Sorry to interrupt your investigation, Agent Gibbs." he said. "I'm Field Agent Eric McKenna, CIA."

"Good to meet you." Gibbs replied as they drove into the city streets. "What exactly do you need to speak with me about?"

"A lot of things regarding this town." Eric said. "I take it you don't know what's going?"

"I do." Gibbs motioned to Sunset, who gave an awkward wave. Eric gave a sigh and facepalmed, before pulling out his phone and dialing a number.

"You were right." he said. "I'll go to contingency. Any other advice? Okay."

Eric hung up and frowned.

"Well, Miss Shimmer, you beat us to the punch it seems." he sighed as they approached Canterlot High. "I was hoping to inform Agent Gibbs of Equestria's existence and connections before now."

"Sorry about that." Sunset replied as they exited the car and headed to the statue. "Shouldn't be much longer now."

As the thre of them watched, a white vortex appeared in front of the statue's base. Gibbs went for his sidearm, only to Eric to gesture for him to stand down. The portal then sent out six humans wearing various sets of attire, and a dog with some lizard like features, which was rather startling to Gibbs.

"Hey, Twilight?" Sunset asked the clear leader of the group, a girl with lavender and pink hair. "You didn't mention that you were bringing friends."

"Well, it may have been spur of the moment." Twilight replied, getting to her feet, then she noticed Gibbs and McKenna standing nearby. Gibbs's expression was one of surprise and shock, while Eric's was more subdued and one of slight frustration.

"Who are they?" she asked.

"Long story." Sunset replied as she helped the Equestrians to their feet. "We can explain later and preferably somewhere more proper."

"That's for damn sure." Gibbs said as the seven new arrivals stared at him. "Now, I want to know what else is happening, and I would very much like to know right now."

This one should be better and more clear. I hope you enjoy.

Next time - Seeing double and discussions at Sugarcube Corner.

As Gibbs, McKenna, and Sunset, now somehow accompanied by five other ponies-turned humans and a dragon-turned-puppy, walked to Sugarcube Corner after parking Gibbs's sedan nearby, Gibbs turned to McKenna with a scowl after alerting his team to meet him there.

"How long has the CIA known about this world?"

"Ever since photos and several viral videos of Princess Twilight's first visit got onto the Internet." McKenna replied. "We got them taken down pretty quickly once we realized people were starting to investigate on their own, outside the law. We had to make some rather unpleasant phone calls and send some even more unpleasant anonymous emails to quiet everything to a manageable point.."

"Sounds like a fun time." Gibbs replied with an amused tone.

"You would think that, Agent Gibbs. I had to write at least half of those emails. And making an email sound threatening? Not exactly my forte'." Eric replied. "I'm more a fieldwork type of person. I like to be in the thick of it."

"You know, I think we might get along after all, Eric." Gibbs smirked. "You sound like me, back in the day."

Eric chuckled as they approached Sugarcube Corner. As the ten of them entered, they promptly froze once again, right in their tracks. Gibbs slowly raised an eyebrow.

Because six other humans who looked like complete carbon-copies of Twilight's guests and Twilight herself. albeit with glasses, were sitting around a table, staring at them with wide eyes. An assortment of phones and books lay on the table, likely their attention was drawn away from them.

"Umm...Twilight?" asked the human Applejack. "Am I seeing things?"

"Which Twilight are you referring to?" Princess Twilight asked. "Me or my human self?"

"Uh...both." human AJ replied. "Damn...this is awkward."

"This isn't awkward, this is awesome!" said both Rainbow Dashes at the same time, both squealing in joy. "I can finally meet someone as awesome as I am! How cool is that?"

Gibbs rolled his eyes and head-slapped the pony version of Rainbow, causing her to stumble.

"What was that for?" she yelped in shock. "Did you just…"

"Think about it." Gibbs frowned. "Though I am more than mystified at how there's now TWO of each of our guests, we'll save that for later."

"I agree. This isn't exactly how we wanted things to go." Eric added.

"And you are, exactly?" human Rarity asked.

Gibbs and McKenna flashed their badges and IDs.

"Oh...NCIS and the CIA?" human Pinkie smiled. "That makes sense. Wait, does that mean I can, like, make some word-anagram-thing to combine them together? Like NCIAS? What would that be called anyway?"

"Uh, I don't think that's even a type of word, Pinkie." Sunset replied. "Let's just sit down and compare notes."

"Umm…Boss?"

Gibbs and everyone else turned around to see an astounded Ducky, Palmer, McGee, DiNozzo, and Ziva staring at them, especially the two sets of identical-looking teenagers.

"Mr. Palmer?" Ducky asked. "Are you seeing double right now?"

"Yes, Doctor Mallard." Palmer replied. "I think we all are."

Gibbs stood up and head slapped all three of the remaining agents in quick succession, each voicing quick cries of shock.

"Snap out of it. Take a seat." Gibbs smirked. "Before I get the urge to head slap you guys again. We've got to compare notes."

====

As the NCIS Agents moved several tables together with Agent Eric's help, Sunset and Princess Twilight were occupied by getting the Equestrians introduced and somewhat used to seeing a splitting image of themselves in their vicinity.

It went surprisingly well, given the task at hand. Eventually, the tables came together, and everyone sat down.

"So, if you're here, Princess…" human Fluttershy said. "What's going on?"

"I'm not sure myself." Princess Twilight replied. "Sunset told me she needed my help here, and the Elements decided to tag along."

"And you just let them do that?" DiNozzo asked incredulously.

"Well, it was a rather starting summons, and I didn't have much to say against it…" Princess Twilight replied. "Anyway, so a US Marine got stabbed here, right? What's this have to do with Equestria?"

"Because we suspect someone from your world may be involved." Ziva replied. " Lance Corporal Grant said that a portal opened up before he was stabbed, and there was a mention of a name. Sombra, I believe."

That made Twilight, Spike, and Sunset freeze noticeably.

"He's alive?" Spike gasped. "The Crystal Heart blew him to bits!"

"Slow down." Gibbs replied. "What do we need to know?"

"Essentially King Sombra was the ruler of the Crystal Empire in the northern part of Equestria." Twilight replied. "He kept his own people as slaves, tyrannized the northlands, and from what Princess Celestia told me, nearly started three wars with Equestria. She and Princess Luna managed to banish him before the Empire disappeared. When it returned last year, Sombra came back with it. Spike and my sister in law, Princess Cadance, managed to return the Empire's Crystal Heart, which then blasted Sombra into millions of pieces."

"Then how did he end up here?" McGee asked.

"For a master of dark magic like Sombra? It wouldn't be too hard." Sunset replied. "Then there's the other problem here. Nearly everypony in Equestria has a human counterpart here. And I'm willing to bet Sombra has one as well."

"Meaning they could be working together." Eric mused. "That could be bad. What exactly is King Sombra capable of?"

"He was capable of taking on Princess Celestia and Princess Luna in direct magical combat on multiple occasions, and they control the very power of the Sun and Moon back in Equestria." Twilight said. "He was also a skilled general and swordsman."

"Brilliant."DiNozzo snorted. "He sounds like someone I wouldn't want to run into in a dark alley."

"That's an understatement." Princess Twilight replied. "What does this all have to do with Lance Corporal Grant?"

"He saw this King Sombra presumably come through the portal and be greeted by someone who said they were happy to "meet face to face"." Ziva replied, referencing her notes. "So I would guess that we're dealing with an accomplice of his here."

Then, Gibbs turned to the window as he stood up suddenly. A black SUV had driven into the parking lot, and was idling in front of Sugarcube Corner. As Gibbs approached, a hand on his sidearm, the window rolled down.

And a beam of black and purple light shot outwards. As everyone inside took cover, the beam impacted against the wall of the bakery and exploded in a violent burst of nightshade-purple. While fragments of the bakery wall rained down, the Agents got to their feet and drew their pistols. Gibbs then looked upwards to see the SUV had vanished into thin air, almost as if it had never been there.

"It's gone!" Gibbs called out in a low growl. "Stand down."

As the Agents holstered their weapons, Eric and Gibbs exited through the blasted-open portion of the wall and surveyed the area.

"This just got serious." Eric said.

"You're telling me." Gibbs replied with a grimace as he watched the debris settle.

Update!

Next time - the Equestrians and their counterparts head to NCIS HQ, Twilight speaks with Celestia, and Sombra reviews his plans.

"Okay, does anyone else feel like this is awkward? Because this is so very awkward." Human Rarity sighed as she looked across the aisle of a government plane that was en-route to Quantico from Boston, carrying the Elements, the NCIS Team, Lance Corporal Grant, and Agent McKenna.

"For you or us?" her Equestrian counterpart replied. "Because if it's us, I would agree."

"At least now I know I'm not seeing double…" McGee rolled his eyes as he worked on his laptop. "Can you believe all of this is actually happening?"

"Honestly? Yes." Ziva replied, looking out the window. "I believe the expression is...first time for everything?"

"I'm sure that applies in this scenario, Agent David." Eric chimed in. "The Crossroads team members have been doing our best to keep the existence of Equestria a secret. I mean, imagine if we issued a public reveal that we discovered a town that was a parallel existence of a world of candy-colored ponies. Think about what would happen."

"I see your point." Ziva nodded. "What exactly is Crossroad doing?"

"Well, our ultimate goal is a formal first contact with the realm of Equestria by established UN Standards." Eric replied. "Still a long ways off from that, though. So far, the only real connection to Equestria we know about is the Portal in front of Canterlot High. We've been trying to make a functional copy of it, but let's just say what we know of Equestrian Magic and human-made tech isn't playing well together."

"I could help." said both Twilight Sparkles at the same time, making them flinch, then sigh at boh Rainbow Dashes calling out "Jinx!"

"We'd appreciate any assistance you can give us." Eric replied. "If I can get authorization, we'd love to have your input."

"At least when this whole case is resolved." Gibbs cut in, Eric nodding. "We've still got Sombra and possibly his human self to worry about."

"Right." Eric said as the plane began to bank for the descent into Virginia. "Cross-world fear-loving tyrant King first, job applications later."

====

As the NCIS team, Eric, Lance Corporal Grant, and both sets of guests arrived at NCIS HQ, they were slightly surprised to have Director Vance waiting to speak with both Gibbs and McKenna, leaving Grant and both sets of guests to their own devices in the main office area.

As Ziva, DiNozzo, and McGee would find out, keeping two sets of six identical teenagers, plus another, plus a lizard-dog hybrid in the middle of the office as inconspicuous as possible...was far easier said than done.

This also included keeping them occupied and out of the way. Luckily, both the Equestrian and Human Pinkie Pies had brought snacks, games, and somehow, a laptop that had access to Netflix, Steam, and various other entertainment services, which was quickly connected to the internet with McGee's help.

"Well, that worked out fine." Lance Corporal Grant smirked as the Equestrians and humans set up a game of Monopoly, set up for multiple teams of two. "Though, how did Pinkie manage to sneak a full bag of snacks and baked goods onto the plane without us noticing?"

"Dunno." McGee replied, quickly sneaking one of Pinkie's jumbo-sized cupcakes from the tray. As he was about to remove the wrapper, he smiled, snapped his fingers suddenly, and headed off towards the lower levels.

"Where's he going with that cupcake?" DiNozzo asked. Then, it clicked as to who he was delivering the pastry to.

"Well...I guess he's trying to redeem himself for the last time a cupcake was in the office." Ziva smirked. "Think he'll do it?"

"We'll see." DiNozzo replied as he sat back down. "Wanna bet on whether or not he succeeds?"

"Ten dollars he won't." Ziva smirked. "You?"

"Same." DiNozzo replied.

"Mind if I join in?" Grant smirked. "I'll bet fifteen you both lose."

"You're on." Ziva smirked. "What makes you think we'll lose?"

"You haven't tried one of those cupcakes yet. I have." Grant smiled. "Trust me. You're going down"

====

"Abby!" McGee called as he entered Abby Scuito's office and lab. "Got something for you?"

"Evidence?" Abby called back form her workroom.

"Nope."

"A ultra-large Caf-Pow?" she asked again.

"Even better." McGee smiled. As she came over and McGee presented the Cupcake, Abby's eyes sparkled at the sight of the tantalizingly made and expertly sprinked baked treat.

"Have I redeemed myself?" he asked. Abby took the cupcake as if holding a crystalline statue, and, giving him a slight glare, took a single bite. Her eyes then flashed in happiness.

The entire cupcake, the vanilla-flavored base of which was about the size of an orange, and the heaping amount of frosting on top of that, was entirely gone in about five seconds. Abby disposed of the wrapper with a flourish and smiled playfully at McGee.

"Redeemed." she nodded. "Where'd you get it?"

"Upstairs in the office. We've got plenty more of…"

Abby was already gone before McGee could finish his sentence. '

"...Them." he groaned. "Gibbs is going to kill me for this."

====

As McGee returned to the office, he saw an ecstatic Abby sampling more of Pinkie's treats, the number of which had somehow increased in the time he was gone, and Dinozzo and Ziva holding ten-dollar bills in their hands. They turned and looked at him expectantly, and McGee simply gave a thumbs-up.

DiNozzo sighed as he and Ziva handed the money to a triumphant Lance Corporal Thomas Grant, who pocketed the money with a smirk and a laugh.

"Did you seriously place bets on whether or not I'd redeem myself?" McGee asked dubiously.

"I'd be surprised if they didn't." said Gibbs as he head-slapped the two Agents with a smirk. "Back the wrong horse?"

"Yeah." DiNozzo replied. "You overheard?"

"We got out before Agent McGee left." Eric said as he came up. "Here's a word of advice. Never underestimate the power of baked goods."

"Especially baked goods like these." Grant smiled. "I swear, is it just me, or did she get more of them somehow?"

"Don't ask." Equestrian Twilight called out. "I tried to scientifically study Pinkie's Pinkie Sense once. It did not end well for me."

"Pinkie Sense?" DiNozzo said, shocked. "What is that, like the Spider-Sense, only for ponies?"

"Ooh! Left arm twitch and a shake! Watch your head!" the Equestrian Pinkie then called out.

"What?"

Gibbs then head-slapped DiNozzo once more. As he gave off a noise of exaggerated pain and sat down to resume working, Gibbs turned to McKenna.

"What can you show me about Equestria?" he asked. Eric pulled out his laptop from his duffel bag and powered it up while he and Gibbs took a seat to review the data.

One of my favorite moments in NCIS is when McGee steals a cupcake meant for Abby, and then receives three simultaneous headslaps. I thought he deserved a do-over for that.

Next time - Sombra reviews his plans, and the NCIS team receives assistance from the Crossroads Team...

Also...thus begins the Official Gibbs Head-slap counter, which will appear in every Author's Notes!

Current count - 9 Headslaps!