SquidgeWorld Archive

"Can't sleep?" Gibbs asked Tony while rolling over on to his back to look at his lover. Tony was sitting up, his knees pulled to his chest.

"No, I was thinking about how close I came to having to kill that kid today."

"That's the sniper's job."

"It would have been my order. I would have had the blood on my hands, even if I didn't pull the trigger. He was only trying to find his mom, and I almost put a bullet in his brain. Not that it would have mattered. If I did, you and everyone else in the school would have been blown to bits." Tony reached and took Jethro's hand in his.

Jethro pulled Tony over until the younger man's head was on his shoulder. "You followed your gut, and everyone, including me, got out."

"I know, but I almost didn't."

Gibbs ran his fingers down Tony's shoulder. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Not really, but I know if I don't it's just going to eat away until I do something stupid." Tony laid his hand on Gibbs' chest and felt his heart beat.

"I'm here whenever you're ready."

"Do you remember the first time you killed someone as a sniper?" Tony asked.

"Yeah, I do. It was in Panama. My CO ordered me to take out some bastard that was holding a school bus full of kids. I wavered for a second until I saw him reach for a little girl, a knife in his hand. He was all ready to make an example of her. I can't say that all my kills were that righteous, but I believe that they were all made to protect the innocent."

"I wish I could say that. When I was in Philly, I ended up being in charge of a hostage situation, not much different than today. Some dirt bag was holding his baby and wife. The snipers were in place; I kept getting a call from one of them telling me that they had a shot. I tried to talk to the perp, get him to surrender, but he wouldn't. He was high on crack, or speed, maybe even LSD. All he kept telling me was that he loved his wife and baby girl."

"Didn't sound like you had a choice, Tony."

"No, I didn't, but I told them to hold off. He disappeared away from the window. The next thing we're hearing three shots. He killed the wife, his baby, and then himself. If I had told them to shoot..." Tony wiped away tears. "If I had told them to shoot, that little girl would be in the first grade."

Gibbs pulled Tony closer. "Is that why you left Philadelphia?"

"Yeah, I couldn't stand being there anymore. Everyone thought I choked but I really thought I could talk him down. End it all peacefully. You have no idea how close I came to blowing away the fifteen-year-old kid. The pressure I was getting from Ziva, the director, even that Marine. I was so close to doing it, just so that I wouldn't look like a coward."

"Why didn't you?" Gibbs asked, running his hand through Tony's hair and down his back.

Tony looked at him, letting the love he felt for the older man shine through. "WWGD."

"Huh?"

Tony lay down, his head back on Gibbs' shoulder where it belonged, his finger rubbing Gibbs' nipple. "What Would Gibbs Do. I knew you wouldn't give into the pressure, you would find a way to save that kid, and besides, my gut was telling me something was wrong."

Gibbs smiled and gave Tony a kiss. "I wondered a couple of times, when I was in that classroom today, what would Tony do."

"You did?"

"Sure. How would Tony get Cody to relax? You've spent a lot more time undercover than I have. You can play any part you want. My first instinct was to grab that kid and throw him over my knee and paddle some sense into him."

"Hey! I thought that was only something you did with me."

Gibbs slapped Tony's head gently. "Keep it up, and you might just get some of that tonight."

"Promise?" Tony asked between yawns.

"Tomorrow, you need your sleep. You've got to face the director tomorrow, and apologize for hanging up on her."

"You would have done it."

"Yes, I would have, and it was the right thing to do, but I'm a bastard and you are just the supporting cast. At least, for now."

"If only they could see the real you," Tony said.

"I'm glad they can't see the me that you do, Tony, and I'm glad that no one's ever met the real Anthony DiNozzo, either, but me."

Gibbs kissed Tony's forehead, pulled the blankets around them, and settled back down to sleep, knowing that they were safe from all the horror of their past, present, and future, at least, for this night. Who knew what tomorrow might bring?