"Remember tonight, for it is the beginning of always."
- Dante Alighieri
Saturday Afternoon
02 June 2017
Lincoln, Maryland
"I'm home, Shan," Leroy Jethro Gibbs called as he entered the house.
His wife (wife!) came around the corner, drying her hands on a dish towel, beaming. "Jethro!"
"Hi," he said, and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
"Stop it!" Shannon grinned, snapping the dish towel at him.
He laughed and stepped toward her, making a lunge for the towel. She dodged around him, still snapping the pale yellow towel, the one with the duck pattern. The newly-married couple danced around each other until a knock on the door made them both still.
"I got it, honey," Jethro said. "Stay here, okay?"
He opened the door.
Saturday Night
02 June 2017
Bethesda Naval Hospital
"Has he woken up yet?" Shannon asked, entering the room with another coffee.
"Not yet," Jethro said. He accepted the coffee and took a gulp.
"Stop, J, you'll choke, and then I'll have to file a report with Tom," Shannon complained.
He beamed up at her. "No, I won't. I love you too much to choke on coffee. Besides, that's a crappy way to go."
"Shut up, Jethro," she teased light-heartedly.
A nurse came into the room with a packet of papers. "Anthony DiNozzo, correct?"
"Yes," Shannon answered shakily. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing," the nurse grinned. "I just wanted to let you know that you've been granted temporary custody. With a chance to adopt. And Dr. Evans will be in here soon to check up on Anthony."
She handed Shannon the papers and then slipped quietly out of the room.
"Oh, my God, J!" Shannon exclaimed.
"He's ours," Jethro whispered back at her, beaming.
"Oh, my God," Shannon repeated again. "He's ours!"
Sunday Morning
03 June 2017
Bethesda Naval Hospital
Shannon was sleeping, head down on Jethro's shoulder. He was still awake, silently watching the boy in the bed. He had read the file, he knew what had happened in their boy's (theirs!) life. Knew about his first family, the loving Naval Academy graduate, naval pilot, Blue Angel, father, and the teacher mother who had been killed in a violent car accident by a drunk driver. Knew about the foster "parents" who had followed, and the abuse Tony had gotten at their hands, abuse that had landed him here, in the hospital. Knew that he and Shannon were Tony's last chance at a good home.
Begin Flashback.
He opened the door.
"Hello?" he said cautiously. A man, gelled dark hair, collared shirt, khaki pants, was standing on their porch.
"Are you Leroy Jethro Gibbs?" the man asked.
"Yes," Jethro answered. "Why?"
"Hi, my name is Nick Sanchez, and I'm a social worker. I have you and your wife, Shannon, as registered foster parents, yes?"
"Yeah."
"Well, we have a situation."
"What kind," Jethro answered, already reaching for coat and badge and gun.
"There is a boy in our system, Anthony DiNozzo, Jr., who needs a family. He is currently in the hospital, but we need someone to take care of him when he gets out. If you are agreeable to fostering him, I need you to go to Bethesda. They have paperwork that you need to fill out to be granted temporary custody. Will you do this?" Nick asked anxiously, pleading, almost.
Shannon, who Jethro hadn't seen walk up behind him, answered. "Damn straight we will."
Nick laughed. "Okay. God, this is fantastic. Everyone in the system says y'all are amazing people. And Lord knows this kid needs amazing."
They had driven to Bethesda, told the nurse at the desk about the situation. She had given them paperwork, Tony's file, and a room number, and wished them good luck. They had almost sprinted to Tony's room, where Nick was waiting for them. He had wished them good luck as well, told them he was gonna do everything he could possibly do to get them custody and that Tony was a good kid who had been thrown every single metaphorical curveball. Shannon had added Nick into her phone and the Christmas card list almost immediately, gave him a hug and a pat on the shoulder and told him she and Jethro could take it from here. And yes of course she'd call him.
End Flashback.
Now, Jethro was sitting in a hard chair waiting for his boy to wake up.
And then he did.
"Who are you?" he asked, almost immediately after he woke up. "You're not Nick."
"No," Jethro answered, "but we're friends with Nick."
Tony sagged into the bed with a deep sigh. "That means you're my new parents."
"Yeah," Jethro said. "Hold on a sec, 'kay? I gotta wake my wife up. Hey, Shan, Tony's awake!"
Shannon bolted upright and blinked sleep out of her eye. "He is?"
"Yes, ma'am," he said, almost smiling. "I'm up."
"Hi! You feeling okay? Anything hurt? Do I need to get a doctor? Are you hungry?" Shannon asked, rapid fire.
"Uh…" Tony said.
"Sorry, buddy," Jethro said. "I think she's a little bit excited. We are. We've heard you're a good kid?"
"My Dad used to tell me that. But no one else does. So I'm probably not that good of a kid. I get in trouble at school a lot sometimes," Tony replied.
"Your dad was a good guy. I trust him a lot more than I trust anyone else. Except Nick. He said you're a good kid too," Shannon answered.
Tony blinked in surprise. "Thank you, ma'am. You don't have to say that, though."
Dr. Evans entered the room then. "Well, well, well. I heard that Big T was awake."
Tony brightened. "Dr. Evans! Long time no see! How're the kids and the wife, Doc?"
"Jake made straight A's last semester and Katie's loving college," Dr. Evans answered. "How are you feeling this fine morning? And be honest, please."
"Well, I'm definitely not concussed, but the arms and the ribs are feelin' a little funky. Katie's at Ohio State, right?"
"Yup, good ol' OSU. Yeah, I think you sprained your wrist, big guy. Can I see the ribs for a sec?"
Shannon and Jethro watched in bewilderment as Tony carried on a casual conversation with Dr. Evans, complete with various immature jokes on the part of both doctor and child.
"Shannon, Jethro, can I speak to you for a second? Wait here, Tony," Dr. Evans said.
Tony flashed a thumbs-up. "Not goin' anywhere, Doc. Except maybe the bathroom. Can I go to the bathroom?"
"Sure, Tony. I'll send Maggie in to wrap your wrist, tape your ribs, and let you go to the bathroom. Good kid."
Dr. Evans then led Jethro and Shannon to a small room off a hallway. He closed the door. "I trust you've read Tony's file, Jethro?"
"Yeah, Doc," Jethro replied.
"You gotta give this kid a good home," Dr. Evans pleaded. "You guys are his last chance. He really, really, needs someone. He has been in this hospital so much that Nurse Maggie and I are his closest friends, along with Nick Sanchez, who I believe you have already met."
"I understand, sir," Shannon told him firmly. "Nick is gonna help us make sure we keep him."
Dr. Evans looked them up and down and then nodded. "I hope so. For Tony's sake."
When they came back in the room, Tony was sitting in Jethro's chair without a shirt while Nurse Maggie taped his ribs. "Hey, man!" he exclaimed.
Jethro pointed at himself. "Me?"
"Yeah! Maggie told me you guys are pretty cool. So I guess I'll go with you. Hey, Doc, when can I blow this pop stand?"
"Maggie?" Dr. Evans asked.
"Well, as long as he keeps the wrist brace on and someone tapes his ribs, then I don't see any reason why y'all can't take him home now," Maggie said thoughtfully.
"Yesss!" Tony shouted. "Wait. Where's my stuff?"
"The Knoxes dropped it off with you," Dr. Evans said grimly. "I'll go get it while Jethro signs your paperwork."
As soon as Jethro signed his name to the discharge papers and Shannon took Tony's things from Dr. Evans, they were headed home (with Tony!)
The kid fell asleep on the thirty-minute drive back from Bethesda, only waking up when the car slowed and pulled into the driveway.
"Is this where you live?" he asked, taking in the house, big backyard, tire swing in the front, red door.
Jethro cut the engine and got out of the car. "Yeah. You like it?"
"Nah," Tony said.
"Damn it," Shannon replied.
"I love it!" Tony exclaimed happily.
Sunday Evening
03 June 2017
Lincoln, Maryland
"Thank you for dinner," Tony said happily. "Where do you put your plates in the dishwasher?"
"You don't have to clear the table, Tony," Shannon answered.
"Who's gonna do it if I don't?" he asked nervously.
"I usually do it. Why don't you go with J and see if there's a baseball game on. I heard you play baseball?"
Tony brightened instantly. "Yeah! I play pitcher and second base. My team won the state championship two summers ago. Dad came back from deployment at the very last game! It was awesome!"
"Do you want to play here?" Jethro asked.
"I mean, if it's not too much trouble, then I would like to very much. But if it's gonna be a problem then I don't have to play. I don't want to cause any trouble."
"You can definitely play, kid. I really want to see you go at it."
"Thank you," Tony blushed. "Do the Nationals play tonight?"
"Why don't we go find out?" Jethro asked happily, beaming back at Shannon, who smiled, then snapped a towel at him.
Sunday Night
03 June 2017
Lincoln, Maryland
Shannon, for the second time that long long day, leaned her head down on Jethro's shoulder. He kissed her head and smiled up at the ceiling.
"I love you, baby," he said to her.
"Love you more," she whispered back, kissing his scruff. "But you really need to shave."
"I need to shave and make some calls," he said. "We gotta get Tony enrolled in school and I need to change my file at NCIS 'cause I have a dependent now, I gotta get Ducky in the loop so he can tape Tony's ribs-"
"Shh, don't worry so much," Shannon said.
"I'm not worrying," Jethro retorted. "You just can't hear the Big Bang Theory."
"Shut up, Jethro," Shannon laughed. "You're so difficult sometimes."
And then it was his turn to laugh as Shannon promptly fell asleep.
This will be my third attempt at a kid Tony story. They say third time's the charm, right?
This is going to be a super long AN but I just want to clarify a few things. First, I'm using some artistic license and changing Tony's backstory. Instead of Senior being the jerk, I'm making Tony's successive foster "parents" the jerks. Second, I have little to no knowledge of the foster system. If I get anything wrong, please do not ever hesitate to tell me and I will fix it best as I can. Thanks in advance! The fictional city of Lincoln, Maryland, is based off of the real city of Camp Springs, Maryland, which is a 17 minute drive from the Navy Yard.
I'm using my own parents as a model for the interactions between Gibbs and Shannon. The dish towel incident, and Shannon's "J" nickname came from my father. Other Inspiration for this story comes from "The Boy and the Bunny" by El Spirito. I will never be able to live up to that story, but I have done my best to try. I hope everyone enjoys this story. I know I sure enjoyed writing it.