AN: not quite as warm and fuzzy as my recent stories.

Gibbs brought the sedan to a screeching halt at the entrance to the alleyway.

"DiNozzo! Go to the left. McGee, with me. We'll go in this way."

"On it, Boss. Yes, Boss," came the replies.

The three NCIS agents drew their weapons and steadied themselves, hoping that they were finally going to capture Otis Clancy after a two month search. Clancy had been caught on CCTV killing two US Marines in a convenience store shooting and had eluded NCIS for weeks. Maryland State Police had reported a hit on the BOLO and the MCRT had raced to where he had been seen in the small town of Felixton.

DiNozzo took the left hand turn while Gibbs and McGee went cautiously up the main track. Tony had gone a couple hundred metres when he saw Clancy emerge from behind a dumpster.

"Boss," he whispered into his earwig, "found him. He's heading down the alley."

"We're coming to you," came the immediate response, "don't lose him."

It was then that Tony saw a young man coming down the alley and realised that the arrest might not be so simple after all. He stepped forward,

"Federal Agent," he shouted, "Otis Clancy, we have a warrant for your arrest. Put down your weapon."

Clancy looked startled and his eyes darted between Tony and the young man. Tony cursed when he saw the gun in the suspect's hand.

"Go back, kid," he ordered, "go on!"

His order was not obeyed. Instead the young man drew a gun out of his belt,

"I can help," he said.

"Put the gun away," said Tony calmly, "leave this to me."

The next thing he heard was a series of gunshots and he saw Clancy falling to the ground. Simultaneously Tony felt a searing pain in his arm and he fell down in shock and pain as he realised he had been shot. Before he had time to register what had happened, Gibbs and McGee arrived. Gibbs levelled his gun at the kid,

"Put your gun down," he ordered.

"I was just trying to help," came the quavering response.

"Just put the gun down carefully, Son," said Gibbs levelly, "then we'll talk about it."

The young man placed the gun gently on the ground and Gibbs went to retrieve it. McGee ran over to where Clancy lay,

"He's dead, Boss," said Tim, "bullet through the head."

He then ran over to where Tony was sitting, clasping his hand to his arm,

"You OK, Tony?" he asked.

"Just peachy, McGee," grunted Tony through his pain.

"You got him," said McGee.

"Not me. I didn't fire," said Tony, he looked at his arm. "Damn. This jacket was new."

"You're alive, DiNozzo, could've been worse," called Gibbs from where he was standing next to the young man. "McGee. Call Ducky. And call the State Police as well. Let them know what's going on."

"Yes, Boss," said McGee.

"Now, kid, what's your name?" asked Gibbs.

"Jonathan. Jonathan Delaney. People call me Jonty."

"OK, Jonty. How old are you?"

"Uh, 18."

"18?" said Gibbs, "this isn't your gun then?"

"N-n-no, Sir. It's my dad's."

"He know you've got it, Jonty?"

"No," admitted Jonty.

"Looks like you killed someone here, Jonty," said Gibbs.

"I was just trying to help," said Jonty, "he had a gun."

"Yeah, I know," sighed Gibbs, "you like guns, Jonty?"

"I guess," said Jonty, "I don't know. First time I've fired one. My dad only got it last month."

"OK, stay here," ordered Gibbs. He walked over to the body and looked at Clancy's gun before going to check on Tony.

"Kid looks a bit young to have a weapon," observed Tony.

"He is," agreed Gibbs, "He's 18. It's his dad's. What happened, DiNozzo?"

"I saw Clancy. Called you. Then Jonty showed up so I had to step up; told the kid to get back."

"And?"

"And he didn't. Got the gun out of his pants. Spooked Clancy. Next thing I knew, Clancy was on the ground and I had a hole in my arm."

"You didn't fire?" asked Gibbs.

"Didn't get a chance," said Tony. "I guess the kid shot our suspect?"

"Yep, and I think he shot you too. Clancy's gun hasn't been fired."

"Damn," said Tony, "wouldn't like to be in Jonty's shoes." He struggled to his feet and walked over to look down at Clancy's body and sighed. Clancy had been a murderer and a thief but there was something pathetic about his crumpled body and headshots always triggered flashbacks to another person killed by a bullet in the forehead. His thoughts were interrupted by two police cars arriving with Ducky's van in their wake.

"Ah," said Ducky as he walked towards Gibbs. "Good thing you had us tag along, Jethro. I see you 'got your man'."

"Not us, Duck," said Gibbs, "it was the boy. DiNozzo took a round in the arm, take a look, will you."

"Certainly, Jethro," said Ducky. "Now, Anthony, what have we here?"

"A ruined jacket," said Tony bitterly.

"And a nasty looking wound," observed Ducky, "and please refrain from saying it's just a flesh wound."

"Oh," said Tony plaintively, "it's the only good thing about getting shot!"

As Ducky prodded at his arm, Tony found himself looking at McGee taking photos of Clancy's body and Jimmy getting the gurney ready. He couldn't help but contrast their business-like approach with the reverent compassion with which Kate's body had been treated.

"You all right, DiNozzo?" asked Gibbs noting his distraction.

"I'm fine," said Tony, "just thinking."

"Careful," said Gibbs, "one injury's enough for today."

Tony decided he didn't have enough energy to waste on an appropriate response.

"You need to go to the hospital," announced Ducky, "this needs to be properly cleaned and stitches put in."

"McGee," called Gibbs, "go with Tony to the hospital. Take a statement. Tell the doc what painkillers do to him. I'll ride back with Ducky and Palmer."

McGee looked momentarily stricken at the thought of escorting Tony to hospital. His wide-eyed gaze cheered Tony up.

"Come on, McNursemaid. I won't make you hold my hand."

"Just you wait till they get their needles out, DiNozzo," groused Tim, "then you'll be begging me to hold your hand."

Tony swayed slightly as a wave of dizziness hit him but he covered this weakness with a joke, "McRomeo! Or is it McJuliet? I never knew you felt that way. How long have …"

"Come on, Tony," said McGee grumpily, "before I shoot you myself!"

Gibbs suppressed a smile as he watched the two bicker their way to the car. Then he sighed before turning his attention to Jonty and the Maryland State Police troopers who were approaching.

NCISNCIS

"I hear congratulations are in order," said Agent Fornell as he stood in front of Gibbs' desk the next day.

Gibbs raised an eyebrow.

"Caught Otis Clancy," elaborated Fornell.

"Why are you interested, Tobias?" asked Gibbs.

"You wound me, Jethro," said Fornell clasping a hand to his chest. Seeing that Gibbs was unimpressed, he continued, "We think Otis might be responsible for some other robberies. When we found out that NCIS were looking for him for your case, we checked the MO of some other crimes. Took a closer look at some security footage and it looks as if it was Clancy. Wouldn't be good enough to make an ID from normally, but we think it's him."

"So, it wasn't just a one off?" said McGee.

"No," said Fornell, "if we're right, you brought down a nasty piece of work yesterday. Thank you."

"Always a pleasure to assist the FBI," said Gibbs gravely.

"I brought pastries," said Fornell.

"You did?" asked Gibbs in surprise.

"Sure," said Fornell as if this was usual practice, "there were some left over from a leaving party."

Gibbs grinned; this was more likely.

"Where's DiNotso?" asked Fornell, "I thought he'd have smelled them from the lobby."

"Sick leave," said Gibbs, "he got …"

"Here I am," said Tony walking from the elevator. McGee was startled, thinking for a moment that Tony really had smelled the pastries from his apartment. "Sorry I'm late, Boss. Took a while to get ready this morning."

"Thought Ducky told you to take today off," said Gibbs mildly.

"I'm fi … all right," said Tony, "thought I'd come in. Guess the Maryland Police will need something from me."

"No," said Gibbs, "it's all taken care of."

"Oh," said Tony, "they'll need me in court though?"

"No."

"The inquest then?"

"Not going to be one," said Gibbs.

Tony adjusted the sling on his arm and sat down carefully. "No inquest?"

"Ducky signed the death certificate," said McGee, "there's no doubt about cause of death."

"A violent death," said Tony.

"Ducky's happy. Maryland ME is happy. There's no family to request an inquest. Nothing to investigate." said Gibbs.

"Ok," said Tony, "so what's Delaney being charged with?"

"He's not," said Gibbs.

"He's not?"

"Do I stutter, DiNozzo?"

"No, Boss. But I don't understand. The kid took his dad's gun, carried it round Felixton and then shot two people. Killed someone. Am I missing something? Why isn't he being charged?"

"He didn't mean to shoot anyone," said McGee, "it was an accident."

"Charging Jonty wouldn't achieve anything, DiNozzo," said Gibbs.

"What?" said DiNozzo.

"Do you want to ruin his life, DiNozzo?" asked Gibbs, "think what a charge would mean."

"Boss, I don't want to ruin anyone's life but this kid stole a gun …"

"Just from his dad," offered McGee.

Tony ignored the interruption, "stole a gun. Disobeyed an instruction from a federal agent and then shot the federal agent as well as Otis Clancy."

"A violent criminal," said McGee.

"Delaney didn't know that," said Tony, "and he was a suspect. And anyway, when did it become his job to shoot Clancy?"

"You're just mad that you got shot," said Tim in an appeasing tone.

Tony stared at him, "of course I'm mad," he said, "wouldn't you be?"

"We all know that Clancy wasn't going to come quietly," said Gibbs, "it'd have ended the same anyway."

"We don't know that, Boss," said Tony, "I was the one who saw Clancy in that alleyway. Yes, he had his gun out but I'm not sure he was going to use it."

"It's too late now," said Gibbs, "it's been decided. Nobody cares about Clancy."

"So it's all going to be tidied away," said Tony, "and Delaney doesn't even get told off?"

"Calm down, Tony," said McGee, "what good will filing charges against Jonty do?"

"Calm down?" said Tony, "easy for you to say. What if it had been me that Delaney had killed? Could have been, you know. Couple inches different way and I'm dead."

"You're not," said Gibbs flatly.

"But if I had been?" asked Tony, "would Delaney have been getting a pat on his back for that as well? Sorry you were traumatised, kid, because someone got in the way of your bullet, but you'll get over it."

"Tony …" began McGee.

"But it wouldn't have mattered," continued Tony, "If I was lying dead on the floor because there wasn't anyone to care about me either?"

"Tony, that's not what we mean. And you know it," said McGee. "Of course we'd have cared."

"You want to practise that, McGee?" said Tony, "sound a bit more convincing?"

"DiNozzo," said Gibbs wearily, "we'd have cried at your funeral. Didn't happen. Move on."

"But, Boss …"

"DiNozzo," snapped Gibbs, "Go home. Take the day."

"Gibbs …" began Tony.

"Come on, DiNotso," said Fornell, "I'll give you a ride home."

"You will?" asked Tony in surprise.

"Sure," said Fornell, "think of it as the FBI returning a favour."

By the time Tony had thought of a response, Fornell was shepherding him towards the elevator.

"What's going on, Toby?" he asked as the elevator door closed.

Fornell sighed, "My Mom always wanted me to go into the Foreign Service," he said nostalgically, "I thought I'd practise my diplomacy!"

Gibbs waited until the elevator had gone and then announced, "Going for coffee!"

Ellie had watched the exchanges as if it had been a tennis match and now she came and stood in front of Tim's desk. McGee briefly tried to ignore her but knew she wouldn't be leaving anytime soon.

"What?" he said.

"What was that about?" asked Ellie.

"Gibbs, Ducky and Maryland State Police decided that there didn't need to be an inquest on Clancy. Gibbs and the State Police decided that Jonty shouldn't be charged with anything," said Tim, bending his head to his work once more.

"I got that," said Ellie, "so what it was about?"

Tim sighed, "Tony thought Jonty should have been prosecuted for something."

"It was pretty serious," Ellie pointed out.

"But charging him might have ruined a young man's life," said Tim.

"He killed someone," said Ellie.

"I know."

"And he shot Tony."

"By mistake."

"Still …, Tony's got a point," said Ellie.

"And so has Gibbs," said Tim.

"And what do you think?"

"I think Tony's mad that he got shot," said Tim.

"You didn't answer the question," said Ellie.

"And I think Gibbs has got a point too."

"And you still didn't answer the question."

"I don't have to. It wasn't my decision. You may have noticed that Gibbs doesn't really go in for consultations."

"OK," said Ellie, realising that she wasn't going to get Tim to give an opinion. "So what's worrying you?"

"I'm not worried," said Tim.

Ellie gazed at him.

"OK," he caved, "sometimes Tony gets something in his head that he can't let go of. And it's not always pretty. Serious Tony messes with the team dynamic. Trust me, it's awkward. And this time …"

"This time, what?"

"This time he may be butting heads with Gibbs. And that's not good news. For anyone."

Ellie frowned and went back to her desk to analyse this new data.