NCIS and its characters belong to CBS Paramount Network Television, Paramount Network Television, Belisarius Productions, & Thinkfilm.
Missing scene for "Twilight." (No angst here, folks.) Thanks for the beta, Jen!
Before the Sun Set by emergencyfan
Someone yelled something and before he could process what was being said, the world exploded and Dr. Donald Mallard, in deference to his nickname, ducked instinctively. The reflex reaction turned out to be unnecessary though, seeing that he was safely sheltered, as was Jimmy Palmer, between both trucks. As the debris stopped falling, he and Palmer both ran to the back of the truck just in time to hear Kate's agonized cry of "Tony!"
Realizing what had happened, Ducky spun towards the embankment, breathing a silent prayer of thanks as agent Anthony DiNozzo crested the hill on his hands and knees--though admittedly looking somewhat worse for wear.
"Boss? Remember when I said 'I never felt better'? I lied," DiNozzo rasped as he collapsed.
Muttering a comment under his breath having something to do with Tony's 'remaining lives', Gibbs, with Ducky hot on his heals, quickly approached their collapsed teammate. Kate, McGee, and Palmer were only a moment behind them.
"Anthony?" Ducky nodded to Gibbs to help him roll DiNozzo over and the medical examiner was relieved to see no obvious signs of trauma. "Can you hear me?"
Breathless and slightly glassy-eyed, Tony blinked at the bright sky above. "Yeah, Boss."
"Do I look like Ducky, DiNozzo?" asked Gibbs, his voice rough with the irritation that masked relief.
"Yes. I mean, you're right, so 'no'," said Tony, finally making lucid eye contact with Gibbs. "Sorry, Boss, my ears were still ringing a little. Honest mistake." Grunting in reluctant acceptance of that excuse, Gibbs automatically put a hand on Tony's back to support him as the younger agent struggled into a seated position. "Won't happen again."
Noticing a familiar gleam in the young agent's eyes, Ducky wondered if the mistake was not entirely as innocent as it appeared. Gibbs's agents seldom, if ever, got a chance to pull anything over on him, but if anyone could, Ducky knew that Tony Dinozzo would be the one to do it. Young Timothy wasn't brave enough--yet, and Kate...well, Kate was just too professional, and too smart, to try.
"You're damn right it won't," replied Gibbs, leaving DiNozzo to Ducky's tender ministrations. He turned towards his two other agents with an angry glare that caused Palmer to take an involuntary step backward and McGee to swallow hard in nervous tension. "What the hell happened down there?"
"It—it—was a b-bomb, Boss," stuttered Tim, more than a little put off by their leader's anger.
"You think, McGee?" snapped Gibbs.
Kate stepped forward, and after a brief glance towards Tony, rattled off a somewhat more coherent report. "…it was wired underneath the car to the trunk latch. If Tony hadn't happened to see it…"
"Why were you on the ground, Anthony?" asked Ducky suspiciously, though he kept his voice low enough not to interfere with Kate's report as he flashed a penlight in Tony's eyes.
"Long story," replied the agent.
"Why was DiNozzo so far behind?" Gibbs demanded.
Though Tony enjoyed seeing McGee squirm on occasion, this wasn't some probie mistake. This had been his decision and he'd take any heat that was going to come from it. "I took the key from McGee and told them run for it." He briefly had second thoughts as Gibbs turned his full attention back to him and his automatic cringe when those angry eyes met his had nothing to do with Ducky's poking and prodding. "He had already started turning it and I'm the best sprinter out of we three," he added, suddenly feeling less confident about his decision.
"Us three, Anthony," corrected Ducky automatically as he tucked the penlight back into his pocket. "And you were hardly in any shape to be running races today."
"I'm still the fastest." Tony held out his right arm, fingers wiggling impatiently. "Somebody give me a hand up, willya?"
"Duck?" asked the senior agent, staring down at Tony but pointedly ignoring the outstretched hand. Neither Kate nor McGee dared step forward to help after one look at Gibbs's face. Palmer had very prudently disappeared into the truck in search of some indispensable item a few minutes earlier.
Ducky gave a slight nod of approval and gripped Tony's left elbow, and after a short moment's hesitation Gibbs grabbed the outstretched right wrist. Together they hauled DiNozzo to his feet, steadying him for a moment as he swayed. Tony quickly shook off their hands and limped over to the truck, seating himself morosely on the bumper.
"He really okay?" Gibbs asked Ducky, watching his bedraggled agent.
"He seems only slightly worse for wear. It wouldn't be a bad idea for him to go the hospital and get checked out…"
"NO! No way. No more hospitals," announced Tony. "I've had enough of the medical profession the past few weeks to last me a lifetime. Present company excluded of course," he added upon seeing Ducky's raised eyebrow.
"Mmmm," remarked the medical examiner as he shot Gibbs a look and murmured, "He got a new nurse once he was moved out of isolation. I hear she weighed upwards of three hundred pounds."
Gibbs's lips quirked momentarily in response to that revelation. "If you're sure he's okay, I'd like to finish processing the scene while there's still something left, Duck."
Mallard nodded and started towards the edge of the embankment without a second glance. "Mr. Palmer, stop hiding in the truck, please, and bring my equipment," he said, waving his hand above his head without bothering to turn around.
"Watch yourself, Ducky," called Gibbs, knowing the medical examiner was experienced enough not to approach the car too closely until it had been cleared. Though, by the looks of the smoke and various debris that littered the area, there wasn't enough left to be rigged with a secondary device.
Palmer jogged by, ladened with the doctor's equipment as Gibbs walked over to where Tony was sitting, flanked by Kate and McGee. He hid an approving smile at their unconscious protective positions. "Kate, we'll need more photos. McGee, measurements and sketches."
Tony stood--hand gripping the van door nonchalantly as if Gibbs wouldn't notice how much he needed its support. "What do you want me to do, Boss?"
After a quick glance at Kate and McGee sent them scurrying for their supplies, Gibbs reached out and pushed Tony's shoulder with one finger. The younger agent lost his balance and sat down hard on the van's bumper with very little grace and a small gasp of pain. "Sit here until I tell you different, DiNozzo."
Tony seemed disgruntled--but a little relieved too, and wisely chose not to argue the point. Shaking his head, Gibbs headed towards the edge of the embankment. After what happened, he wanted to keep a personal eye on his team as they investigated the wreckage.
It turned out there was little left to investigate, not that Gibbs had expected anything different. The tire that had almost hit them was still smoking quietly near the truck. At least they had Kate's original crime scene photos. It wasn't much, but it was something. He vented some of his irritation on the hapless tow truck driver when the kid started asking stupid questions, but it did little to improve his overall mood. The bodies had been secured for transport. What was left of the wreckage, sans the smoking tire, was on its way back to Abby. She was good, the best, but he had little hope that even she could discover anything useful about the murder of the two sailors. Maybe there would be some traces of the bomb that would lead him to whomever just tried to kill his people though. He was storing most of his frustration and anger up and saving it for them. When he found them, they were going to wish they had been in the car when that bomb went off.
Ducky was seated on the bumper of the truck, taking Tony's pulse, but discontinued it with a pat to the young agent's shoulder when he caught Gibbs's eye.
"Well?"
The medical examiner smiled slightly. Jethro LeRoy Gibbs was never one to mince words. "I'll want to give him a more thorough exam when we get back, but I think it's unlikely he's done himself any serious damage beyond exhausting what little energy reserves he had this morning."
"Not a problem." Gibbs looked around. "Kate," he said, approaching the agent who was packing up her gear, "Make sure Tony sees Ducky for a check-up when we get back."
"You got it," she said as she loaded her gear into the van around Tony who was still sitting slumped on the bumper. He still looked tired but seemed less pale than before.
Tony immediately began to protest. "Boss, I don't need a babysitter…"
"If I wanted your opinion, I would have given it to you, DiNozzo," snapped Gibbs, throwing his bag of gear at McGee, who managed to catch it without dropping anything else he was holding. He stomped back towards the cab of the van. His people had almost been killed today, would have been killed if not for a fluke. It pissed him off no end. They would find the people responsible for this and Gibbs would make them pay.
-o-
"You heard Gibbs, Tony, we're going to see Ducky."
"Fine," said DiNozzo. "Just umm—I need to make a quick pitstop," he said, ducking into the men's locker room.
"Tony!"
He poked his head back out of the swinging door.
"Come on, Kate, have a heart…"
"Gibbs will have my head—on a platter."
"Five minutes," he said, holding up an appropriate number of fingers before ducking back into the room.
"No. Wait. Tony!" Kate fumed with impotence. "I'm not afraid to come in there after you!" she threatened.
He quickly pulled out his cell and typed in fellow special agent Paula Cassidy's number. She'd be in town this weekend and he was hoping to hook up with her. Despite his best efforts to the contrary, she had been adamant about keeping their relationship on a platonic level. With a little luck, this whole Y-pestis-slash-explosion thing would work in his favor. It'd be a thin line though—too much concern and sympathy and he'd end up being mothered all weekend, and mothering was definitely not what he wanted from Paula. He also didn't need Kate butting in and adding her two cents to the conversation, thus his clandestine locker-room call.
When DiNozzo didn't appear after five minutes, Kate looked in either direction down the hall, then took a deep breath and reached out to push the door open. It swung away before she could touch it, leaving her with no support and she crashed into the agent who was exiting. Just her luck, he was cute, too. After an embarrassing apology, she settled herself outside the door to wait, praying that Gibbs wouldn't happen by in the meantime and determined to make Tony wish he had stayed home another week.
-o-
It was classic black and white film noir at its best. He lay on his back on the autopsy table, the cold from the burnished steel seeping slowly through his clothing and into his bones. Above him, Dr. Frankenstein prepared for his latest experiment…
"I'm not sure I find that comparison entirely flattering, young Anthony," scolded Ducky as he finished checking the young man over for signs of broken bones or internal injuries. A few bruises were all he had found so far. Not that he expected more. Tony was stubborn and pig-headed at times, but he wasn't stupid. If he had been seriously injured by the blast, he would have said something earlier, despite his derogatory comments to the contrary.
"Oh come on Ducky, can't you just picture the lightning and thunder in the background?" said Tony as he held up his hands, thumbs together, framing the medical examiner as if with a viewfinder of a movie camera. "Abby would be nuts for the idea."
"It's perfectly sunny outside, and we don't have windows in any case." The tone was brusque but it was said with a tolerant smile. "You can sit up now," he added as he turned to dig into his medical bag for a few more items, "just don't move too quickly…"
The last few words were lost in a spinning black vortex of angry buzzing as Tony swung his legs off the edge of the table in one smooth motion and instantly realized he had made a major mistake. Slowly the blackness began to recede and the buzzing dimmed. Tentatively he opened his eyes and was happy to see he was still sitting on the table instead of lying face down on the floor. It could have something to do with the fact that Ducky and Kate were on either side holding onto his arms. Kate looked pale and scared and he mentally kicked himself for his stupidity.
"Sorry guys, major head rush."
Ducky studied his face intently for a long moment, looking skeptical.
"I'm fine, really!"
Releasing the arm, Ducky nodded to Kate who reluctantly followed suit, her face still a mask of worry. Tony hated seeing her like that. She looked so—vulnerable.
"Unbutton your shirt," said Ducky as he wrapped a stethoscope around his neck and began shaking down the old-style thermometer.
Trying hard not to think of where that thermometer might have been last, Tony obediently began to undo one of the buttons. His fingers paused on the second button as he was suddenly struck by an idea. Clutching the edges of his shirt together melodramatically, he said, "Make Kate turn around."
The look of fear and worry on Kate's face turned to surprised confusion. "What?"
It was a start. Still clutching his shirt together in his left hand he spun the forefinger on his right hand in a circle. "Turn around. I can't keep you from undressing me with your eyes but you're not getting any freebies here. "
Slowly the confusion drained away and was replaced with something else. Tony hid a satisfied smile as he enjoyed her outraged expression. "Make her turn around, Ducky," he demanded over his shoulder while maintaining eye contact with Kate.
"Tony, I'm not interested in anything you have!"
"Then why won't you turn around?" he needled.
Ducky stepped between them. "Perhaps you should wait over by the door, Caitlin," he suggested diplomatically.
Kate's mouth opened and closed but all that came out was an exasperated sound. Tony couldn't hide his triumphant smile any longer. This was the Kate he liked, bright color high in her cheeks, eyes flashing dangerously, not the frightened woman that had been holding him up only moments ago. However, he found himself unable to bait her any further, momentarily derailed by Ducky who slid the thermometer into his mouth and under his tongue. She was hacked though, and her sense of fair play didn't keep her from attacking him while he was unable to respond in kind. As the aches and strains of the day began to catch up with him, he found his patience was wearing a little thin. This was the second lecture he'd received from her since they had returned from the crime scene. By the time he had exited the men's room--granted it was more like fifteen minutes rather than the five he had promised--she was in rare form and berated him non-stop until they had entered autopsy.
He sent her one of his patented innocent smiles, guaranteed to up her blood pressure a few more points.
"Doctor," said Jimmy Palmer as he approached with a tray of scorched debris, breaking the tension between the two agents. "What do you make of this? It looks organic to me."
Ducky removed the stethoscope from his ears and peered at the tray curiously. "Hmmmm… That is a bit of a mystery."
Tony leaned over so he could get a better look and grinned, pulling the thermometer from his mouth. "Kate'll know what it is."
The doctor exchanged a brief glance with Tony as if trying to decide whether or not to play along while Palmer looked on uncertainly.
Waving at DiNozzo to replace the thermometer, Ducky jerked his chin towards Kate. "Well, go on Mr. Palmer. See what she can make of it."
"Of course, doctor." Palmer took the tray over to Kate who peered at it with a curious frown before suddenly jumping backward with a small squeak of surprise.
"Do you know what it is then, Caitlin?" asked Ducky in mild amusement at her reaction as he readied a blood-pressure cuff and pushed Tony's sleeve a little higher.
Tony grinned and pulled the thermometer from his mouth again. "A former friend of Kate's."
"Get that fried reptile away from me," she said, waving Palmer off as she gave a shudder of disgust.
"Oh, yes, I see!" exclaimed Palmer, happily enlightened.
"Mr. Palmer, please return our innocent bystander to refrigeration where he belongs."
"Of course, Doctor Mallard." He paused, suddenly struck by an idea. "Good joke, doctor. Because reptiles are cold-blooded, right?"
Ducky rolled his eyes. "No, Mr. Palmer, because it's a dead snake."
A little crestfallen, Palmer placed the snake into cold storage before returning to his previous task of putting together the burned corpse puzzles.
"'Friend', DiNozzo?" Kate took a few steps menacing steps towards Tony before she remembered Ducky's request and paused, crossing her arms and fuming at the restriction. It was obvious she wanted nothing more than to get her hands around a certain co-worker's neck.
"Be honest, Kate, you probably got more action from him than you have with any of your boyfriends lately," he said, grinning widely at her response. Irritation, anger--anything but fear.
"Put that back in your mouth," said Ducky as he replaced the thermometer under Tony's tongue yet again, then wrapped the blood pressure cuff around his arm. "So, you're on intimate terms with our singed serpent, are you Caitlin?" prompted the medical examiner.
"Tony said it was poisonous."
Ducky raised an eyebrow. "But it wasn't?"
"No. According to McGee, it was harmless. He said Tony walked around Shenandoah forest with one wrapped around his neck for hours."
"Kate failed to appreciate the joke," mumbled Tony around the thermometer.
"I suppose that explains why you were lying on the ground?" Ducky wryly surmised.
Kate's attitude was quickly going from mad to nag. That, plus Ducky's fussing, was beginning to get on his nerves, especially when the medical examiner demanded a second blood pressure reading. "I'm telling you, I'm fine."
"One thirty-six over eighty-four is not fine for you, Tony. Your blood pressure is high," countered the doctor.
Tony squinted unhappily. "Almost getting blown up tends to do that to me--not to mention hanging around Kate when she's in one of her 'moods'."
"This isn't funny, DiNizzo," said Kate, as Ducky finally reclaimed his thermometer.
Despite the fact he had two more years of experience as an NCIS agent than she did, Kate was using that 'you're being a bad little boy' tone. Now, if she had the decency to say it while being properly dressed in a shorter-than-regulation Catholic school-girl uniform...
Otherwise it was demeaning--and annoying to boot. Time to remind her what stakes they were playing with. "No, it's not. If I didn't come to work today, you and McGee'd be lying on one of the tables over there."
"At least your temperature's pretty normal," said Ducky, examining the thermometer's results.
"Yeah, I'm good to go," said Tony as he slid off the table, groaning at the unexpected aches and stiffness. He really needed to remember to move slower, at least for a little while.
Ducky's face held a hint of amusement. "Oh, muscle soreness?" he asked innocently.
"Only when I move or breathe," Tony joked through gritted teeth.
"Yes, clearly you haven't quite recovered from your bought of Y. pestis. You need a rest," said the medical examiner, clapping DiNozzo on the shoulder.
Why did everyone suddenly feel the need to treat him like a three-year-old? "No, I need to get back to work, Ducky," Tony said, pulling down his sleeve.
Kate shook her head in frustration. "Damn it, Tony. I should just take you home and get you in bed."
WHAT? It took a second for him to process what she had said before he exchanged an incredulous look with Ducky, silently confirming he wasn't hearing things: Did she just say what I think she said? Oh, this was going to be gooood!
END