NCIS
184. NCIS
“Maybe it’s like falling in love. It can happen like that.” After a quick snap of his fingers, Tony walked back to his desk.
Speechless, Kate stared at him in annoyance. She knew she had not fallen in love with that terrorist, though he had been oddly fascinating.
She murmured, “Is that how it happened with Gibbs?”
Except for a slight tensing of his shoulders, Tony didn’t react, looking down at his paperwork.
Finally, he answered, “I don’t know what you mean, Kate.”
“Tony. Yes, you do.”
No response.
A more demanding “Tony.”
With a sigh, “Yeah. That’s how it happened.”
190. NCIS
Kate prided herself on being observant. She knew she was a good profiler. There wasn’t much that got by her. She sometimes made snap judgments so people managed to surprise her occasionally.
She’d already made up her mind about DiNozzo. He was a two-year-old masquerading as an adult, though he was a good NCIS agent. She’d assumed he was a new employee because she didn’t see how Gibbs could have tolerated him for long. She was surprised to learn they’d been working together for over two years. She was really surprised the day she realized they were more than that.
192. NCIS
“Do you think they know?”
Abby stopped sifting Kate’s silky hair through her fingers.
When Kate noticed her lover’s stillness, she glanced over her shoulder.
Puzzled, Kate repeated her question.
Abby replied, “Does it matter if they do?”
Still confused, Kate responded, “Well, not really. I'm just wondering.”
Abby shifted away from Kate on the couch.
Without thought, Kate followed. She frowned when Abby shifted away again.
Finally realizing what Abby thought, she said, “I don’t mean about us. I already told Gibbs about us. I meant how they feel about each other.”
Abby’s incandescent smile was her only answer.
193. NCIS
Some days, Gibbs hides away in the basement, working on that "damn boat he’ll never finish, especially not in a land-locked basement." Bitter words spoken in anger by his ex only showed how much she didn’t understand. He uses the rhythmic movements, strain of his muscles, and susurration of sanding to drown out his thoughts on days that batter at the heart he pretends not to have.
He gets lost in the motion, thinking of nothing but the next action of his body. Until the rich scent of coffee drifts down the steps. He smiles and puts down the sandpaper.
194. NCIS
Kate fidgeted with her bouquet, watching as Abby walked towards her.
Abby had compromised between her family’s ideas and her own sense of style. She wore a beautifully-simple gown made of white satin, cut to flow smoothly over her body, without further ornamentation. It wasn’t needed. Her joyous expression made her breathtakingly lovely.
Kate felt a pang of regret. She knew she’d lost her chance. Abby had made it clear she liked Kate, but she’d never had the courage to reciprocate.
Abby smiled at her as she stopped at McGee’s side.
"We are gathered here to join this man and…"
195. NCIS
Tony feels the blood pumping through his veins, the shock of each foot hitting the asphalt travel through his body, the heat of the afternoon sun beating down on his shoulders. He feels the cool breeze blowing, trying to cool the sweat on his skin. He doesn’t hear anything other than his heartbeat thrumming in his ears.
He runs until any thought of guns, of knives, of blood-spattered car windows disappear from his mind. He doesn’t think about anything at all. Until he gets a sudden craving for coffee. He smiles as he thinks about where he can find some.
196. NCIS
She'd laughed when her sister teased her about him making a great first husband. She is not laughing now.
She stops herself nervously tapping her fingers on the smooth wood of the mahogany table. She angles her head forward to hide behind the fall of her auburn hair. The soft weight brushing her cheek brings back memories of her teasing him about loving her only for her hair. Looking across the vast distance between them now, she sees no trace of that man on his carefully blank face.
She scrawls her name across the document ending her marriage to Jethro.
197. NCIS/X-FILES
Tony was reaching for the light switch when an indefinable something caused the hair on the nape of his neck to prickle. Knowing he made an easy target, brightly lit by the hallway light behind him, he quickly stepped to his left, drawing his gun as he did.
“Who’s there?”
No sound broke the darkness. A darkness that was too complete. His living-room drapes had been closed. Only one person ever did that.
“Alex.”
A quiet rustling in the corner, then a raspy chuckle. A dark figure stepped into the block of light from the front door.
“Hello, little brother.”
198. NCIS
Abby knew Ducky was aware she wasn’t listening to his story, only enjoying the rumble of his chest vibrating against her cheek. She arched into the stroking hand smoothing down her back, slowly stretching. She settled against his side, placing her head on his shoulder again.
She loved the time they spent being quiet together. Abby smiled faintly, knowing she was the one being quiet. She loved listening to the cadence of his words, the softly accented lilt in his voice, the underlying tenderness of it. He talked so she could pretend to listen and take pleasure in simply being.
201. NCIS/X-FILES
Tony is in shock. He hasn’t seen nor heard from his brother in over two years. He’s started to wonder if he ever would again. He stands frozen by the front door for a moment before he rushes towards Alex. He’s in such a hurry he leaves the door open behind him.
The as yet unfamiliar hard press of plastic on the small of his back still disconcerts him when his brother pulls him into an embrace.
"Robin." The childhood nickname whispered against his neck makes him smile.
He says "Don’t call me that," and pulls his brother closer. "Batman."
202. NCIS/X-FILES
Gibbs was cursing the lack of available parking and the broken-down elevator when he noticed the front door was ajar to DiNozzo’s apartment. He pulled out his gun at the unusual sight. He walked stealthily to the open door and slowly peered into the apartment.
Gibbs was surprised when he found Dinozzo in an embrace with another man. Gibbs gasped in shock when he saw the look of contentment on his face. The expression on Tony’s face as he caressed the man’s cheek was extremely tender and full of love.
The quiet sound drew Tony’s attention to the doorway. "Boss!"
203. NCIS/X-FILES
Tony felt Alex tense against him. Knowing his brother’s usual reactions to the unexpected, Tony tightened his hold on him. Feeling the lessening of tension in the tall frame in his arms, he dropped his arms, stepping back.
He glanced toward the silent figure in his doorway. "Come in, Gibbs. I want you to meet Alex…" The slight press of Alex’s hand on his back caused him to stutter to a stop, pulling his attention back to Alex. A subtle shake of the head changed what he was going to say. "Krycek. A friend."
"Alex, this is Gibbs, my boss."
205. NCIS
Gibbs knew Tony would eventually realize he was being played. Tony pretended to be a goof-off, but he was a good agent and usually didn’t miss anything. Except that his friend was playing him.
Gibbs wasn’t entirely sure how it started. Because Tony had made a pop-culture allusion that he hadn’t understood, Tony decided to educate him. He’d shown up at Gibbs’ with beer and DVDs. He did it each time Gibbs didn’t understand a pop-culture reference. So now there were many things Tony thought he didn’t get. Gibbs enjoyed their time together too much to ever let him know.
207. NCIS/X-FILES
Alex watched the man staring at him from the doorway, sizing him up, trying to read him. Alex returned the intent stare, curious about the man his brother worked for. Tony had just started with NCIS the last time he’d seen him and hadn’t had the opportunity to tell him much about it before Alex had had to leave.
The man’s direct gaze and erect posture bespoke an ex-military man. A good man, but tending to be inflexible, judgmental, reminding him of a certain AD.
His mouth curled into a sardonic grin. He would enjoy yanking this man’s chain too.
208. NCIS/X-FILES
Gibbs stiffened in response to the smirk on the stranger’s face. Tony noticed his tense posture and glanced over his shoulder to see what caused the reaction.
Tony probably thought he was being subtle when he stepped closer to his guest and jabbed his elbow into his torso. It did wipe the expression off the man’s face, which made Gibbs grin.
He stopped grinning when he saw the way the stranger looked at Tony. An open smile, full of warmth, lit up his face, making him seem younger, more approachable.
Gibbs frowned when Tony responded with an equally warm smile.
187. NCIS
Gibbs knew he shouldn’t laugh, it would give the game away, but he couldn’t help it. The expression of disbelief on Kate’s face when he’d told her about Tony looking at her PDA had been priceless, only surpassed by the guilty expression on Tony’s face when he’d seen her wrathful look promising retribution.
Gibbs had known his lover would be in hot water as soon as he’d begun to speak, but decided that Tony needed to be reminded that Kate was only a friend, not anything more. Though only teasing, Tony had become too comfortable with Kate for his comfort.
244. NCIS
"Je-Director, I can't do this any more. She wants to buy a house. A house! That is just a little too real for me!"
Jen pulled off her glasses, carefully placing them on her desk.
"Tony, you knew what you were getting into when you took this assignment."
"Jen, I thought I did. I really did. But I like her. A lot. She's sweet, beautiful, she loves me, she's everything a man could want."
"She is also the daughter of the man responsible for supplying weapons to more armed terrorists than any other arms dealer in the last three decades."
245. NCIS/SGA
"Tony, I understand what you're going through. I know how easy it is to get caught up in your assignment. But you have to understand how important this is. This is truly a matter of national security. I would not have asked this of you if it were not. If I didn't think that you could do it."
Tony bent forward, dropping his head into his hands. Then, raking his fingers through his hair, he looked up.
"Jen, I don't know if I can keep doing this."
"This wouldn't have anything to do with a certain colonel who visits sometimes?"
258. NCIS
“Why didn’t you want me to go?”
Gibbs heard the casual way Tony spoke and paused in the forward motion over the wooden rib of the boat.
Taking a measured breath, he turned around to put down the sandpaper in his hand.
“I’m sure Ziva and McGee told you about Jackson before you came down. They also told you how I act around him. Don’t get me wrong. I love my dad. But he drives me crazy. I get caught up in being his son, start behaving like a teenager again. I didn’t want you to see me like that.”
267. NCIS
Kate is aware they can’t see her any more. Nevertheless, she likes to pop in every now and then to see how they are doing. She wants to make sure they’re still doing okay. They hadn’t handled her death well, especially Tony and Gibbs. They had been with her when she’d died, had blamed themselves for not saving her.
She likes to see how good Tony and Gibbs are doing now, smiling at each other, at the new girl. She likes Ziva, likes how she seems to fit in effortlessly, though she does wish they hadn’t forgotten her so completely.
372. NCIS
Gibbs has been feeling a low level anxiety for a while now. He doesn’t know what has been causing the feeling, just knows his gut is trying to tell him something. He’s been trying to identify the reason, but hasn’t been successful.
He’s verified that everyone is ok. Tony, Abby, and Ducky are fine. He’s even checked on Blackadder at the FBI. It took him a while, but he finally realized that it’s been almost two years since Tony left Baltimore and joined NCIS. Tony has always left a job after two years.
Gibbs has to convince him to stay.