A/N

This was inspired by Carrie Underwood's amazing song "Just a Dream." It's TATE, Set up immediately following her murder. Some of the details before her murder I've taken the liberty and changed so that it fit's the song. I have listened to the song before but I heard it today again and this just popped into my head. I don't own anything, the Song is Carrie's and Tony and Kate are products of greater minds then mine. I just hope you like it…please review. Thanks!

Just a Dream

Everyone was surprised when they found out…they were surprised, but happy.

Tony took a deep breath trying desperately to blink back his pain, the one sided conversation in his head still on a continuous loop.

Apparently it was the consensus that you hated me...

Tony, I swear to God if you come up with one more movie reference I'll kill you myself.

Thank God I knew better.

He knew that this was it. It was now or never.

After a year of relentless flirting, months of under the radar dating and weeks of carrying that velvet box around waiting for just the right timing, Tony knew that this was the moment they'd both been waiting for their entire lives.

She was mad at him….again…this time because he forgot her birthday. She never came right out and said it, but the way she folded her clothes up and jammed them in her dresser drawer in a crumpled mess screamed of a pissed off Caitlin Todd. He'd been watching her the past few minutes from the door. Quietly leaning against the frame as she mumbled curses to herself. He was going to wait for her to finish but he couldn't help it, he wanted to see the look on her face.

"Kate."

She nearly jumped out of her skin when the sound of her name broke through all the angry chatter in her head.

She spun around, hands on her hips and came face to face with one Anthony DiNozzo, huge beautiful diamond ring held up to her eyes between thumb and forefinger. She worked hard to focus on it at such a close range but here eyes shifted to his when he spoke.

"Marry me."

It wasn't a command, but it wasn't really a question. Either way, he'd managed to get the fight out of her eyes, but what he saw now were close to tears. For a brief but terrifying few seconds his heart dropped to his knees in fear that she'd flat out refuse.

But her arms wrapped around his neck and she placed a slow kiss on his lips. Suddenly his heart became a world class gymnast and did a perfect ten point back flip straight down to his toes.

He knew that was her answer. Not only to his…question…but to all his prayers.

Tony broke free long enough to slip the ring on her finger and gaze into the face of his future, which he couldn't wait to start. And it was Kate that surprised him by reading his mind.

"Let's do it, right now."

Tony realized he must have made some sort of odd face because she laughed and started pulling him towards the door.

"Kate, it's ten o'clock on a Tuesday night." He said as he stumbled through the living room and tried to get a good look at his wrist watch, finally getting the exact time only when she stopped long enough to grab her keys.

"It's after ten o'clock, there is no place in DC that is going to be available for us to do this now."

He watched as she pulled on her rain jacket and turned back to gaze at him before heading out the door.

"I know people."

"Kate, I don't think the people you know are going to be able to help us out with this." He yelled after her as he bounded down the steps to her car.

""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""""

"Apparently I was wrong."

Tony found himself standing at the end of a very long aisle less then an hour later. It was the church Kate attended while she was here in DC. She had gotten to know the preacher, an older man named William, quiet well and he was willing to do her this little favor. Sure there were certain protocols that were skipped, but the blanks could be filled in later.

They'd done a pretty bang up job though. The church was lit only by candles, the traditional stained glass picking up the light and throwing beautiful shapes of colors all around the church. Tony sent a prayer up to the big guy for giving him the sense to wear a suit to work that day, it wasn't quit a tuxedo, but it sure did the trick well enough in it's absence.

Kate though was the one he was curious about. She'd left the house in jeans and a t-shirt, and he knew her well enough that she wasn't going to get married in that, no matter how shot-gun it was.

But he didn't have to wait much longer because Preacher Will took his place next to Tony and soft music began to pour out of the CD player they'd brought from the Sunday School rooms. The Church doors opened up wide and he found himself staring at the most beautiful women on the face of the earth.

She had on an old fashioned Jackie O. style dress and a veil that was already lifted from her face, revealing skin that was lightly touched with make-up and hair that had been softly curled. Will leaned forward and said something about it being the dress his wife wore for …something. Tony didn't hear because his world tipped slightly when she began walking towards him. All this time he thought he'd be frozen in fear when he got married. Instead he was frozen by the sheer, undying love he had in his heart for this amazing women.

The sounds from the military band brought Tony screaming and kicking the entire way back to the present. He realized Gibbs was pulling on his arm, helping him to stand up and a wave of complete sickness came over him. He was standing, again, at the front of this Church. The same exact Church where less then a week ago, at 11:47 at night, he married the girl of his dreams. He was so strong then. So confident that his life was getting ready to take off. It just didn't seem possible that he was watching the guards carry her flag draped casket down the aisle she'd walked. Just a week ago.

He felt more then saw Gibbs and McGee move closer to him. It was like they were on watch, waiting for him to just break down, or lose it. But he stayed has stoic as he possibly could as he watched Preacher William get in front of the tons of people who had gathered to "celebrate her life." He kept his jaw clenched as the congregation sang one of the saddest songs he'd ever heard and was sure never to forget. He made it through the eulogy and the prayers and the words of love from people she'd known, people she'd touched.

It was at the end. Tony watched as the guards methodically grasped the draped flag in their hands and folded it many times over until it was tucked into a perfect triangle. He watched as it was passed respectfully from one soldier to the next Then he watched in dread as he was suddenly singled out in the crowd. He knew it was coming. He'd been to funerals like these before. The remaining spouse always got the flag. And when the soldier kneeled down in front of him and handed him the flag, he took it and held onto all he had left of her. Everything she was, everything she believed in, worked for, honored and loved was in his hands at that very moment. Everything they could have had, everything that could have been was folded up and tucked away in the stars and stripes. It was the closest he'd get to her ever again.

Despair hit him like a ton of brick and he couldn't even breath. He squeezed his eyes shut trying to escape the dizzying feeling of loss. He pulled the flag close and held it to his chest forcing himself to breath deeply and not blackout at her funeral.

She'd kick my butt for stealing her thunder he thought which made him dig himself out of the pain that was threatening to swallow him whole. He stood when everyone else stood. He walked out of the Church when everyone else did. He got into the car he was told to and arrived at the place of her wake, being ushered in by McGee. Even though he was surrounded by dozens of people, even though he shook hands and received offers of regret and sympathy, he still felt like he was standing in the background, watching it all.

It wasn't real. People weren't talking about her as if she weren't coming back. She didn't really leave him all by his self. This wasn't happening to him. He was counting on forever and she was taken from him before they could even start.

He shook his head, trying to wake himself up, trying with all his might to realize that all this, the bullet hole through her forehead, her killer still on the loose, the funeral arrangements, the flag… was just a dream.

Did you cry? It was my intention! Anyway, I know I am being a slacker with my other story but I'm fleshing out the plot line, I'll get one up in the next few days, hopefully. Thanks for reading and reviewing (hopefully)!