Trading Places

Summary: "If you could take her place, would you?"

A/N: Hey, this is my first NCIS fanfic – TATE, of course. It's sort of an AU Twilight. I know there are a lot of post-Twilight fics out there, and I didn't think I would ever write one, but this idea just wouldn't leave me alone. So, here it is…

"If you could take her place, would you?"

The question hung in the air barely a second before he answered firmly and confidently, "Yes."

It was a simple answer, but his tone conveyed the millions of emotions running through him. If he could take her place he would – in a heartbeat. Even practically speaking it would only make sense. She had so many people that cared about her. Not just him, but her family and friends. He remembered the procession for her funeral and how the line of cars had seemed endless. At the time, he had absently wondered how so many cars could fit on the tiny, narrow road that snaked through the graveyard. He had no idea Kate had so many friends, but it didn't surprise him. People would want to associate with someone like her. She was smart, beautiful, caring, strong – he could go on endlessly, but the fact was that she was amazingly unique and the world needed her.

"Why would the world need her and not you?"

His head snapped up and he stared into the crystal blue eyes of the stranger beside him. Had he said those things aloud?

"What?" It was the only thing he was able to utter. He knew for a fact that he had only been thinking those things – he hadn't said anything aloud. His gravelly voice was testament to the fact that he had barely said more than a word or two here or there since her funeral the day before.

"You heard what I said." The stranger replied calmly.

"But how –"

"First answer the question." The man's voice was firm, yet light at the same time. It had the effect of making Tony want to obey him.

"Well, because," he cleared his throat and thought about his answer for a moment. "Because she had so much to offer," he finished simply, knowing that he sounded cliché.

"And you don't." It was a statement, as if the man had said aloud what Tony left unspoken.

"It's not the same. There aren't that many people that would miss me, first of all. The only people that would really care if I was gone would be my co-workers," he paused for a beat, then, "and they'll get over it soon enough. They are trained to handle these things."

"But you are not." Again, the stranger voiced what Tony didn't.

And again, Tony was caught off guard, unable to find the words to describe what he was feeling.

"I – I," he stammered a moment. Then, he took a deep breath, "I can't live without her," he finished in a whisper. "I don't know how."

Tony absently thought it was strange that he was talking so openly to a man he didn't know at all. He was normally not one to share his feelings and thoughts with anyone. But there was something about the blue-eyed stranger that allowed him to put his guard down and share things that he had never shared with anyone else before. It was almost as if the man already knew what he was thinking. Maybe it was just the alcohol getting to him, but he felt as if the man already knew everything that Tony was telling him – as if he already knew his deepest thoughts.

The man simply dipped his head once in a curt nod. His eyes conveyed that he understood exactly how Tony felt about her.

They sat in companionable silence. The man sipped his water, seemingly deep in thought, while Tony finished yet another drink. He wasn't even sure what he was drinking at this point, nor did he care. As long as it was alcoholic and would help him forget, even for a little while, he would drink it.

"You two had a unique relationship." The man spoke abruptly, causing Tony to splash some of his drink. He wasn't sure if the man was asking him or telling him.

"Yeah, it was amazing," Tony replied wistfully, even though he wasn't really sure what it was. He wasn't sure if the relationship they had shared could be categorized, or even described.

"But she didn't know." The man seemed to like talking in short, to-the-point sentences. Tony didn't mind, though. And despite his vagueness, Tony knew exactly what the man was referring to.

"No. I didn't – I couldn't tell her."

"Why not?"

Tony let out an exasperated sigh. He wasn't annoyed with the man, but with himself. The man seemed to understand that, as he simply waited quietly while Tony tried to collect his thoughts. He had a sort of hypnotizing effect on Tony. It never occurred to him that he could simply not answer the man. Instead, Tony struggled to find the most honest answer he could.

"I don't – I just –" Tony paused. He took a deep breath and let it all out again before he answered dejectedly, "Because she wouldn't want someone like me. I'm not good enough for her."

He paused again, but the man seemed to know that he had more to say and waited silently for Tony to continue.

"She was way too smart for me," Tony smirked humorlessly as he remembered how she always seemed to know things. "She would never let herself be outwitted by me. In fact, she always worked hard to make sure she did her best in whatever she did and she never let herself fail at anything," and Tony admired that so much about her. His eyes became unfocused as he continued to remember, "The things she did, the things she said – she was just so perfect. She has so much strength and she cares so much and she's so intelligent." He noted absently that he had begun to talk about her in the present tense at some point, but he didn't care. It hurt so much to talk about her as if she was gone. He knew she was gone, but he felt like a knife sliced through his heart every time he had to acknowledge it.

Again, there was silence. Tony was lost in remembrance, while the man seemingly tried to make a decision about something.

After some time, the man finally spoke. This time Tony was expecting it and cocked his head toward the man, though he continued to face forward, staring at the myriad of alcoholic beverage bottles displayed on the wall in front of him.

"Will you survive?" It was an odd question that the man posed.

Odder still was the fact that Tony silently contemplated the question for a few moments. He turned to look the man in the eye and the man followed suit. "I don't know." He stated quietly, letting his eyes convey the true answer – 'I don't think so.'

Again the man nodded once, seemingly coming to a decision. His eyes shifted to look past Tony, behind him, as if weighing the consequences of his decision. Then, he moved his gaze back to meet Tony's and simply stated, "I know."

At that moment, something passed between the two men – an understanding of some sort. While he couldn't describe what had happened, Tony suddenly knew that somehow, he had gotten a second chance. His eyes widened, and the man, for the first time in their entire conversation changed his expression, if only slightly. One corner of his mouth turned upward in a slight smirk and his bright blue eyes seemed to twinkle. Tony watched amazed. He knew but at the same time he didn't know what had happened. He did know that somehow, this stranger had allowed him a chance to make things right. He didn't know how or why, but at the moment, he didn't care.

"Thank you." Tony managed to utter, conveying most of his gratitude with his eyes.

The man gracefully slid off the barstool. With one hand he dropped an old-fashioned black hat onto his head that Tony hadn't noticed before, and brought the other hand out in front of him, as if to shake Tony's hand. Tony stared at the man a moment. Somehow he knew that when he shook the man's hand, things would change.

Giving the man one last grateful look, Tony stepped forward and grasped his hand in a firm handshake.

As soon as his hand was firmly in the grasp of the other man, Tony's world began to sway and shift. The bar around him blended and became a swirling mass of colors. He lost all sense of direction and he realized with a start that he was suddenly alone. The man was gone and Tony felt like he was suspended in the eye of a tornado, where, instead of wind, what swirled around him were colors – every imaginable color at that. He couldn't feel anything at all, not even his own body. There was no air, but he didn't need to breathe either.

'Am I dead?'

The thought suddenly occurred to him, yet it brought no panic. He was just calm and content where he was. If he was dead, then he supposed that Kate would be alive, and that would mean everything was right.

But just as he began to feel hypnotically content watching the swirling and pulsing colors, a harsh light began to cut through the warm atmosphere around him. The light dissolved the colors around it wherever it appeared; it was as if the light was burning holes into the beautiful canvas of colors that had been surrounding him. The numbness that had prevented him from feeling his own body was beginning to lift and he was slowly becoming aware of voices in the distance.

The first feeling that assaulted him as the numbness pulled farther and farther away was pain. His chest felt heavy and nearly every part of his body ached. As more awareness came, he realized that his eyes were open and he was staring at bright florescent lights attached to the ceiling. The surface he was lying on was cold and hard, but something soft had been placed under his head and neck.

The increased awareness of his surroundings also brought with it an increased awareness of the pain in his body, which caused him to let out an involuntary groan. Suddenly, the voices that had been steadily increasing in volume ceased. After a brief pause, he heard the sharp sound of heels on tile approaching him quickly. He didn't want to risk moving his neck to see who it was, since it already felt very sore. Besides, whoever it was would be in his line of sight any moment.

When the face finally did come into view, his breath caught and his eyes blurred. Directly above him was the worry-filled face of Kate Todd. The concern on her face only grew as she took in his expression, "Tony?"

"Kate," he managed to half-whisper, half-sob before the darkness that had been dancing around the edges of his vision finally overtook him.

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Ok, so I may continue with this story if you guys want me to. I already have most of a second chapter written. Otherwise, I'll leave it as it is - let me know what you want me to do.