Title: Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Genre: Slight Het, Casefic, Horror
Rating: T (foul language in first chapter)
NFA Secret Santa fic for fictionnaire, who requested Tony/Faith Coleman (JAG lawyer from seasons 1 & 2), and a member of NCIS suffering from poisoning. Complete, 5 chapters, will post one per day (or thereabouts). Special thanks to Fingersnaps for the beta.
Part 1 – A Beginning and an End
Tony logged off his email and leaned back with a sigh. It had been one hellacious week and he was truly looking forward to the first weekend in two months when they would not be on call. He knew he needed a break when the cases all started running together and he had tested the limits of Gibbs' minute patience by referring to the cold cases as more solvable than their current ones. They had finally gotten a break in the most recent "murdered Petty Officer dumped in Rock Creek Park" earlier in the week and now all that was left were the mounds of paperwork.
He glanced over at his partner and grinned. McGee almost seemed to live for paperwork and thanks to him most of the heavy lifting on this case had been reduced to manageable levels. Tony considered asking McGee and Ziva to join him for drinks to celebrate but both looked as if they needed a break from everything as well. Still, it never hurt to give them an option…
"Hey, Probies. I was thinking about trying out this pub in Georgetown one of my frat buddies recommended. Care to join me?"
"No thank you, Tony. I have plans for the evening."
"Oh, really? Care to share, Ziva?"
"I intend to spend it at home, relaxing, with a book."
Tony shuddered. "Sound like something McGee would do. How about you, McWallflower? Got plans?"
"As a matter of fact, I do. And no, I'm not sharing."
"Oooh, Original Recipe Probie's got a date? I demand details."
"No, it's…" He caught Tony's grin and groaned. "Not falling for that this time." He shut down his own computer and stood, grabbing his coat and bag as he did so. "Enjoy the pub. I'll see you on Monday. Goodnight, Ziva."
"Goodnight, McGee. Have fun," she said with a smirk and a wink. He just rolled his eyes and headed for the elevator. After he was gone Tony turned back to Ziva.
"Do you know what he's going to be doing?"
She just smiled before gathering up her belongings and heading out. "Goodnight, Tony."
Tony watched her leave and sighed. "Guess it is just me after all." He briefly considered asking Abby or Jimmy but then he remembered the Goth mentioned going to a concert and the Gremlin was going out with his girl. Tony shook his head. Who could have ever imagined that the ME's assistant would have the stable relationship in the group?
Resigning himself to flying solo, Tony grabbed his coat and headed for the elevator. Thank God for real Fridays, he thought as the doors slid shut.
An hour later he walked into the pub, oddly named Billy Bones. He had expected a typical Americanized and kitschy version of an old-world watering hole and was pleasantly surprised. The neon signs advertising Harp and Guinness were absent and the place looked more like an upscale steakhouse, with high-backed booths, richly colored walls and carpeting instead of the exposed brick and dark-stained floors one normally associated with a drinking establishment. The bar itself was fully stocked with an impressive array of libations and Tony settled in to place an order for one of the rarer whiskeys.
He allowed his gaze to roam over the room and finally it settled on the occupants of the booth near the door. He could see only the left arm of the person who had their back to him but he could tell by the delicate and immaculately manicured hand that it was a woman. She wore no ring on her finger so he deduced that the couple was not married. He looked at the man seated opposite, also ringless, he could see from where the man tightly gripped his beer glass, and further deduced neither was having an affair. However, he could tell there was trouble brewing. The man's body language revealed his tension and anger, even though his expression was blank. Tony knew that look. He had used it himself when he was trying not to give a suspect a read on him.
The bartender, a rather plain but perky blonde wearing a name tag that said Melanie, drew Tony's attention away from the couple when she handed him his drink. He thanked her and took a sip, sighing with pleasure as the smoky, peaty taste warmed his mouth and throat. He was definitely adding this place to his list of regular hangouts.
He returned his attention to the couple in time to see the man grab the woman's hand with what was obviously a strong grip. Tony immediately rose from his seat and quickly walked over when he heard the woman's small gasp of pain. The man looked up as he approached and his expression showed he clearly didn't appreciate being interrupted.
"This is a private conversation. Fuck off."
The woman didn't turn to acknowledge his presence but his arrival distracted than man enough for her to pull her hand out of his grip.
"I don't think she likes this conversation," Tony said and gave the man a predatory smile. "Maybe it's time to take a break."
"Maybe you should mind your own damn business."
"Enough, Trey," said the woman and Tony was surprised that her voice sounded familiar. "This conversation, and this relationship, is over. Leave. Now."
He stared at her, his fury breaking through for a brief moment before he regained control and the blank expression returned.
"This is not over."
"Oh, I think it is," said Tony. "The lady asked you to leave. Don't make her ask twice."
'Trey' stood and stared Tony in the eye, but the agent wasn't intimidated. This guy was an amateur compared to the people he'd dealt with over the years. Finally the man dropped his gaze and stalked off towards the back of the building. Tony watched until he disappeared down the hall to the restrooms and then moved so he was facing the remaining occupant of the booth. His breath caught in surprise when he realized why her voice had sounded familiar.
"Lt. Commander Coleman?"
Her eyes widened in surprise. "Agent DiNozzo?" She gave him a rather rueful smile. "It's been a long time." She sighed. "I am sorry you had to get caught up in that. Trey can be rather…difficult."
"I noticed. Are you OK?"
"I'm fine. Just…fine."
Tony settled into the booth across from her and studied her with concern. "You want to talk about it?"
"Honestly, no. I'll just be glad to put this whole thing behind me."
"That bad, huh?"
"You…have no idea." Her expression clouded a moment before she quickly pulled herself together. "So…how have you been?"
"Oh, you know: same old routine."
"Still working for NCIS, I presume?"
"Yep. Still on Gibbs' team. You still with JAG?"
"Yes. I just returned from the Stuttgart office a couple of months ago when I was promoted to Commander."
"Well congratulations. How long were you in Germany?"
"I was there for two years, and before that, Okinawa. It's…nice to be home."
"I can imagine. Or maybe you just missed me, Faith," he said and gave her a wide smile. She stared at him, a disbelieving look on her face, until she finally chuckled.
"I see some things haven't changed all that much…Tony." She met his gaze and studied him. "Or maybe they have…"
They spent the hour sharing a bottle of Faith's favorite wine (and Tony had to admire her taste), catching up and reminiscing about the cases that had brought the JAG lawyer head to head with the MCRT. Tony kept an eye out for Trey and noticed when he returned to the bar, where he ordered another drink and watched his former girlfriend and the man who had joined her. The looks Trey was giving Tony made it clear to him that there could be trouble, so he pretended to ignore the glares and waited to see how the man would react. Finally Trey slammed his glass on the bar and stomped out. Faith visibly relaxed once he was gone, which told Tony that she, too, had been aware of his continued presence.
They eased back into the conversation and Tony realized how much he was enjoying her company. He took the time to study her and liked what he saw: her dark hair hung loose about her shoulders and although he thought he saw a thread or two of silver, she still looked much younger than her age. Her dark eyes flashed with intelligence, something that had admittedly intimidated him before but now he could appreciate and admire her drive for perfection. The sudden desire to lean forward and kiss her delicately freckled countenance surprised him and he pushed it down with the thought that if he tried it, she'd probably stab him with one of the perfectly sharpened pencils she carried in her briefcase. That thought caused him to let out a soft chuckle and she stared at him in surprise.
"What?"
"Nothing. I just…this is unexpected, that's all."
"Unexpected?"
"Yeah, I…I haven't really been much for conversation before. It's nice."
She studied him for a minute and smiled: a real, genuine smile. It softened her features and emphasized her appeal even more.
"I agree: it is nice. I've enjoyed this, too. I may be sorry I asked, but…where do you think we should go from here?"
Tony seriously considered his answer. It would be easy to go his normal route and risk scaring her off. She had just ended what was obviously not an easy relationship and although he wanted more, he decided that this time it really might be worth it to try something new.
He leaned forward and met her gaze. "I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship." He grinned and waited for her response. She regarded him for a long moment and finally gave him another of those beautiful smiles.
"We'll see…"
XXX
Trey Pratchett slammed the door of his apartment hard enough to shake the windows, and was immediately treated to the sound of his neighbor banging on the wall. He sent a few colorful phrases in said neighbor's direction and stalked to the kitchen for a drink. He grabbed a beer from the fridge, flipped off the cap against the edge of the counter and took a long pull on the bottle, draining most of it. He paused to take a breath and registered that the drink tasted awful before swore loudly and threw the offending bottle against the far wall.
The nerve of that goddamn bitch! Over, my ass. It's no-fucking-where near over! Dump me and then pick up some pretty boy asshole that comes to her 'rescue'? I'll bet the whole thing was a set-up…I'm gonna kill that skinny high-tit bitch, and if that nosy bastard gets in the way, I'll waste him, too!
Suddenly his vision blurred and a wave of dizziness hit him. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes until the sensation passed.
Must have drunk more than I thought…
Trey staggered to the living room and collapsed on the couch, still fuming as he tossed his cell phone on the coffee table in front of him. Grabbing the remote from the same table, he hit the power button and then starting flipping through the channels, hoping to find something to take his mind of the events of the evening. He settled in to watch a movie on SyFy. The inherent cheesiness would give him a much needed laugh, at least, and briefly he wondered where he could get some of the mutant killer fish he was watching-mutant killer fish that could walk on dry land, for Chrissakes-and he'd offer up that snooty bitch as goddamn fish food.
Another wave of dizziness hit him and leaned forward and tried to breathe through it. Wouldn't it just be wonderful if he ended the night puking his guts out? It would be all her fault, damn it. Worthless excuse for a…
The feeling suddenly left his hands and they became completely numb. He'd had little twinges of numbness before, nothing major, but suddenly it was if his appendages had been severed. He opened his eyes to see if they were actually still attached and when he saw that they were he sighed in relief. He'd been feeling pretty lousy these past few weeks but he had attributed it to stress. Dealing with Ms. High and Mighty would cause anyone stress, he mused. Suddenly he felt a sharp, twisting pain in his stomach and he lurched to the bathroom where he emptied the contents of his stomach into the toilet and groaned. He opened his eyes and saw, to his horror, that the basin was stained red.
Oh shit...that's not good…that's not good at all…
He violently retched again, tasting the blood this time, and collapsed on the floor as he clutched his stomach and tried to breathe through the excruciating pain he was experiencing. He tried to crawl back in the living room, to get to his phone and call for help but his body wouldn't cooperate. The last thing he saw before darkness engulfed his senses was the image on the TV: a loathsome, vicious creature, all teeth and dead black eyes, slowly crawling towards him…
TBC...