Thanks for noticing, Boss - Ch 5 - Accusations and misunderstandings
Title: Thanks for noticing, Boss (Ch 5/7)
Author: SA3466996
Rating: PG-13
Category: Angst/ Friendship
Genre: Gen (Gibbs/DiNozzo friendship)
Pairing: None
Character(s): Gibbs, DiNozzo, Abby
Summary: Gibbs reads the lists Tony wrote in Anthony's Weakness. Anthony makes a decision that has a profound effect on his working relationship with Gibbs. Set during Bounce. Gibbs/DiNozzo/Abby friendship.
Spoilers: Bounce, Deliverance, South by South West.
Disclaimer: NCIS characters belong to Bellisario, CBS and Paramount. No copyright infringement intended.
Beta(s): csigeekfan and Will. Thanks also to Obsessed Pam for the read through.
AN: Sequel to Anthony's Weakness. Part of the Resignation series. I made an assumption that Tony knows about both the 'narcissistic' and 'attitude adjustment' comments that Gibbs made about him early on in S6. I also took liberties with the number of times Tony has been accused of murder. This chapter takes place the day of Bounce (S6 E16). You really need to have seen that episode in order for the missing scenes in this chapter to make sense.
Chapter 5 - Accusations and misunderstandings
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Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo had the hangover from hell. In addition to struggling to keep the after effects of Vance’s sanctioned shots in check, Tony was also finding being accused of murder-yet again-difficult to handle. What hadn’t helped much either was the fact that the unrelenting pounding in his head had, only moments earlier, been joined by a one-sided verbal sparring session from two of his co-workers.
As he walked slowly away from the rest of the team in the alley behind the hotel, Tony wondered why he thought he expected anything different from them.
This was the third time since joining NCIS that he’d been accused of murder. First he was supposed to have chopped a girl’s legs off and dumped them in the park - that was just sick. Then he was supposed to have shot an arms dealer - granted that was more plausible. Now he was supposed to have killed Lieutenant Grady. Tony laughed at the incongruity of it all. He was only ever accused of murder when he was innocent; never when he was guilty, or at least felt guilty.
It was becoming a standing joke, and that was dangerous. He was a joke. Earlier he’d needed to head off a jibe from McGee but he hadn’t. Couldn’t; too drained from the previous night’s activities and the worry that someone, somewhere was out to frame him. After the next dig from Ziva he’d had it with them. Gibbs had let him go without comment and Tony had been thankful the Boss knew him well enough not to push his buttons by making him stay at the scene.
He wasn’t running away, but he needed not to be near McGee and Officer David. Right now he couldn’t trust himself not to snap and end up giving Tim and Ziva a few home truths - Gibbs too. That was something he’d end up regretting, and he had enough regrets to deal with without that added burden.
Slowly, Tony leaned against the wall around the corner from the alley where McBackstabber and Drop-kick David were finishing up processing the scene of his supposed crime. Tony slid his back down the wall until he landed with a bump to sit on the cold harsh concrete. His head was still pounding mercilessly and he took his time reaching into the pocket of his windbreaker to pull out a small white plastic bottle. Empty. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath in through his nose and then swallowed as he fought to quell the nausea that threatened to take his dignity from him. He looked like a rookie attending his first murder scene.
Feeling the warmth of another body making contact with his own, Tony opened his eyes and looked to his left as Gibbs sat down on the floor next to him. Hip to hip, blown knee to blown leg.
Tony decided to pre-empt Gibbs’s lecture. Not that he deserved one. He hadn’t really had much of a choice but to follow Vance’s orders. “I know what you’re gonna say. That rule about drinking on a school night.” Tony sighed and tried to swallow the bile that once again threatened to announce its presence over the ground in front of him. “Won’t happen again, Boss.”
“Mmm.” Gibbs smiled and withdrew a small container of Tylenol from inside of his own pocket and tossed it to Tony.
Flipping the lid Tony palmed two small tablets and dry swallowed them.
“Tony, they know you didn’t do this.”
Tony looked at Gibbs incredulously. He didn’t, for one minute, think that they did.
“Can’t expect them not to give you some stick. Not with all the crap you give ‘em.”
“I know. Just thought...” He paused, hoping for once he might have had a little support from his co-workers. “Never mind.”
“You can dish it out too.” Gibbs stated firmly, staring into the distance. Tony turned his head to face him and watched as Gibbs licked his lips before continuing, “When I let you.”
Tony’s mind raced through all the times he’d gone toe to toe with the man; challenging Gibbs to keep a focus; delivering his own version of a metaphorical DiNozzo slap to stop him getting in too deep that he lost sight of what mattered. “Only because you know it’s deserved.”
“Maybe.”
“So what... now you’re saying I deserve this? It’s not a pep talk, Gibbs. I don’t deserve this. I never teased McGee when he thought he shot that cop. I never teased Ziva when she made it to the top of the FBIs ‘Most Wanted’...”
“No. You didn’t. But they’ve not been accused of murder four times.”
“Three actually.”
“Four. Forgetting Philly now, DiNozzo?”
“You did your homework,” Tony grunted.
“Make it my business to know my people.”
Tony looked away.
“My Boss was a stickler for details. Good teacher. Unusual methods. Learned a lot.”
“Bet that was painful.”
“Quick learner,” Gibbs stated, sending Tony a warning glare.
“Too much?” Tony asked, exaggerating a grimace in the process.
“Uh huh.”
“You know, Ducky once told me that when you were younger you were a lot like me.”
“I was never like you, DiNozzo. You might have been like me when I was your age.”
Tony snorted. “Figures.”
“Good instincts. Just needed steering in the right direction.”
“And some of us need more steering than others?”
Gibbs shook his head. “Nah. We’re gonna figure this out, DiNozzo. Trust me.” Gibbs didn’t know if he was talking about the case, the difficulties between them... or both.
Tony looked away briefly before nodding and bowing his head.
“Go on, there’s some water in the car.” Gibbs stated, slowly pushing himself up from the floor, his knees cracking in the process. “I’m not stopping for you to hurl on the way back, Tony.”
“You made me lean out the window last time.”
Gibbs chuckled offering Tony a hand up. “Go on. Five minutes, then I need you back.”
Gibbs watched as Tony replaced his sunglasses and standard issue NCIS cap and then started walking in the direction of the car. “Hey! DiNozzo!” He waited until Tony had turned to face him. “Glad you broke it, this time.”
“Broke what?”
“That damned rule!”
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Tony had thought his day couldn’t have got any worse.
How wrong was he?
Several hours later he had his answer - about as wrong as he’d been three years ago.
As he leaned against the wall outside interrogation waiting for Reny to come out, he cast a thought as to what it would have been like to lose three years of his own life behind bars for something he hadn’t done. He came to the ‘oh so obvious’ conclusion that it would have sucked.
It would have sucked - big time.
Twenty four hours had been enough to send him slightly crazy back when Chip had tried to frame him. Four months on a floating prison had had him contemplating walking the plank. The only thing that had stopped him was the knowledge that a certain Captain One-Shot Gibbs would have hauled his ass out of the freezing water only to kick it all the way back to Bethesda. Three years in prison for something he hadn’t done would have sent him all kinds of crazy. How the hell had Reny survived?
God he owed him. It was a mess. His own mess; and he should clear it up. That’s the way it should be. He didn’t want anyone else taking the blame for this. He’d been lead on the case. He’d signed off on it. He didn’t want anyone else coming in and clearing up after his mistakes - especially not Gibbs. He needed lead on this case, and Gibbs knew he needed it.
It had come as a slight shock when Gibbs had turned the case over to him. But then shock turned into relief. Of course there was rule 38, but he never thought he’d see the day when Gibbs-all round bastard and lead agent on the MCRT-would actually go ahead... give up lead... on an active case. Sure, it was great to be able to direct the investigation on his own terms, but that wasn’t the reason he was pleased. Gibbs’s Rule 38 might be ‘Your case. Your lead’, but the DiNozzo translation went something like ‘Your screw up. You fix it.’ And that was just fine with Tony. Tony had to fix this. Right now, he had to stop dwelling on past screw ups, get on with the job, focus on uncovering the truth... and make things right. Tony needed to find out who set Reny up, and bring them to justice.
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Abby stood at her workstation tapping on her keyboard. Entering parameters for her next search, the scientist wondered whether Tony had been pissed that she’d kept calling him Gibbs - especially after their talk the other night. She’d been too preoccupied earlier at the thought that Gibbs might be leaving to realise the ramifications of what she’d said to Tony. When Tony had mentioned rule 38 she’d been so relieved.
And then she’d felt guilty.
She sucked on the Caf-Pow Tony’d brought for her earlier and put the bandage for Sister Rosita’s ankle in her bag. She definitely felt more than a little guilty at the trainee sticker. Sometimes Tony just needed a little push to get him heading in the right direction. Like the other night. Today, though, he’d been one step ahead of her. He was no trainee - although not knowing the constituents of soap was inexcusable. Nope. He wasn’t Gibbs - that was for sure. No one came close to the Bossman.
But then no one came close to being Anthony DiNozzo either.
Abby pressed a button on her speakerphone and launched into the beginnings of an apology as soon as it was answered at the other end.
“Tony, I need to talk to you...”
“Abby. It’s McGee.”
“McGee? What are you doing answering Tony’s phone?”
“Well it is open plan up here and he’s out - thank God. Probably meeting with Sec Nav right now. You know, Gibbs making him Boss has gone straight to his head. Ordering everyone around like he runs the place. God he’s insufferable, Abby. Anyone would think he’s...”
“Leading a case, McGee?”
“Well yeah, of course he’s working a case but...”
“But what?”
“Well he doesn’t have to be so... so...”
“Good at it?”
“Abby... I’m really busy. Tony isn’t here. Can I help? What do you want?”
“Well the answer to your second question kinda answers the first so I’ll answer that one first, if that’s okay...”
“Abby...”
“Two. I wanted to apologise to Tony. One. No you can’t help.”
“Why?”
“Because you’re not Tony and I don’t need...”
“No, I meant... why are you apologising to Tony?”
“Because... because he’s not Gibbs.”
“Finally. Someone else who agrees with me. The sooner Tony stops pretending he’s this almighty...”
“Leader... who drinks to alleviate the burden of his messianic complex...”
“You’re quoting my book!”
“He’s not Gibbs. He’s never been Gibbs, and I really wish you understood that Tim.” Abby paused, “Look, we should forget drinks tonight. You’re busy. I’ve got a back log. Let’s go for lunch later in the week.”
As the sound of McGee’s protestations began to fill her lab, Abby reached out and calmly, but deliberately, pressed the cancel button on the speakerphone before returning to her computer and tweaking her search parameters once more.
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Tony’d seen the smoke as he’d approached the door to Reny’s place. Once inside, he’d called in the burnt prime rib and summoned his team. Upon being given the all clear, they’d begun to process the scene. The absence of Reny was disturbing; even more so given that there were obvious signs of a struggle. Then Ziva found the knife. There was no way of knowing whether the blood coating the blade was Reny’s; not until they got it back to the lab and Abby worked her magic. Tony hoped to God it wasn’t Reny’s. Would they get back to the Navy Yard and find Reny dead; dumped in a duffle bag outside the main gate? Tony knew the third embezzler was tying up loose ends, and as Gibbs voiced the exact same thoughts to him and the rest of the team, the knot in Tony’s stomach tightened further.
Tony stood, head bowed, one hand either side of the open frame which separated the kitchen from the front room. The strain was beginning to set in. This was not going right. He needed time to think. They were being thwarted at every turn and it was driving him crazy. Reny was missing. Fixing this was imperative, and as Tony looked up to face the team he found Gibbs watching him curiously. Tony wasn’t prepared for what Gibbs did next. The man simply smiled and turned away. Gibbs turned away.
What the hell was that about? Tony silently asked himself. Wasn’t it enough that he had problems with McGee refusing to acknowledge his authority unless he got an accompanying nod from Gibbs? Now it appeared that Gibbs was revelling in the fact that he was struggling to keep on top of the case. He just wanted to right a wrong. Why the hell couldn’t they see that? And why did McGee have to be so intent on pushing his buttons?
Anthony was reaping what Tony had sowed.
TBC...
Chapter 6 - No smoke without a campfire