I'm a huge fan of NCIS, and this is my first story for this fandom. This was written as a response to Easier than eating two pies' challenge:
Tony leaves NCIS Washington DC for another place, without much warning. He could be going on a mission, getting a new job, taking a promotion, or anything else you can think up. Why did he leave and where did he go? What are everyone's reactions? A while later (from a few months to several years), he returns. What has changed? How does everyone react? Tell us how he makes amends and what the future holds for him.
I thought it a great prompt and figured 'What the hey? Why not try it?' I have no idea where this is going or anything, but I'm going to juggle this between three other WIP that I have while planning yet another story that I promise WILL NOT be posted until all of my WIP are complete.
With an irrelevant author's note done, enjoy!
January 26, 2010: Washington D.C.
1500 Hours
Agent Anthony DiNozzo, Jr., aka Tony, did not know what Director Vance had in mind when he called him into his office, but he didn't sound happy when he'd called. It was with some hesitation that he knocked on the door, even though he'd been ushered over by the secretary.
"Come in!" came the barked order. Tony pushed the door open and poked his head in.
"Sir? You called me up?" he asked.
"Ah, yes. Sit down, Agent DiNozzo," Vance said, slightly distracted as he searched for something on his desk.
Tony sat as ordered, not quite sure what to expect from this man. Vance had not been the director of NCIS long, but seemed competent at his job, if not a little over-kill for what the department needed.
"Here we are," Vance said, snapping Tony out of his reverie. He slid a case file over the desk. "Now, DiNozzo, follow along, as I can only go through this once.
"Two weeks ago, I received a private call from an agency overseas. They asked specifically for information regarding a case we were not assigned. When I told them so, they realized their error and did not call again. Until yesterday.
"They came to the office and handed me one case file, stating that I was to give it to one agent, and only one. They did not want a large scandal to happen, as it would should a large team be assigned."
Tony, who had been flipping through the pages, stopped and leaned forward. "Excuse me, but…Director? What does this have to do with me?"
Vance rolled his eyes. "DiNozzo. Surely you are a better agent than to ask those kinds of questions, right? What the hell do you think this has to do with you?"
"Sorry, sir. I, ah, do understand what this means. I meant…why me?"
"Look, DiNozzo, I may not like you, but from the way Gibbs speaks of you, you have to be good. I've learned a bit about him: he's had a lot of agents over the years, and there are only a few he speaks so highly of. And this case requires they be active, which leaves you.
"As I was saying, they have found evidence of a smuggling ring between Somalia and the United States. We have yet to isolate the specific port or ports here, but we know where they are in Somalia. INTERPOL is already involved, so they will be there to help. They've already lost several agents, which is why they asked for the best."
"Yes, sir. And, please, explain how I'd be infiltrating this ring?"
"You are going to be sent out with the cargo they tend to take-mainly, high-powered weaponry. We need to break this, which is why we are using the real weapons for this. You'll need to do this several times, and probably even make it look like you've been stealing this, thus showing you are not loyal to this government."
"Sir, I've already been arrested and accused of murder once; I don't think I'll get away with it this time."
"Don't worry, it's all been taken care of by INTERPOL. I assume this means you will accept then?"
Tony sat for a moment, debating the points. Would it be worth leaving NCIS to break this? Vance seemed to sense his hesitation.
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but DiNozzo? I will make sure that your spot on NCIS is still available, but if, and only if, you break this ring. They are using our weapons against us. INTERPOL is desperate for any kind of help, and NCIS is at the top of the list. You'd ship out tomorrow, 0600."
Tony almost didn't hesitate, and his voice almost didn't waver as he said, "I'll do it."
January 27, 2010: Washington, D.C.
0730 Hours
Ziva drummed her fingers on her desk. McGee's eyes darted side-to-side as he absent-mindedly tapped at his computer. Gibbs sat leaned back in his chair as he scanned the entire room. Tony's desk remained empty, but everything-including the Mickey Mouse stapler-remained in its place.
Down in autopsy, Ducky and Palmer both sat in silence, both sensing the tension in the bullpen even though they were nowhere near there.
Abby was in her office in the forensics lab, her music turned down lower in case anybody called. Her Caf-Pow! went untouched next to her.
Ziva finally couldn't take it. "Where is Tony?" the Israeli asked the room at large, breaking the silence that had befallen the team.
Gibbs didn't look at her as he said, "Not here, Ziva."
"Well, I know that! I meant where is he in relation to his location."
"I think we got that, Ziva," McGee said tentatively. "But we don't know."
"I do not understand it," Ziva murmured. "He could not have-" She searched for the right term. "Blown the coop."
"Flown the coop," McGee corrected absently.
"Whatever! Why has he not called?"
"That's what I'm going to find out," Gibbs said, standing suddenly. He marched to the stairs, walking briskly toward Director Vance's office.
He walked in, brushing past the secretary, who quickly and quietly alerted Vance that someone was there. The door was pushed open by an irate Gibbs, even though the anger was not directly shown.
"Agent Gibbs," Vance said, standing. "What can I do for you?"
Brusquely, Gibbs answered, "You can tell me where the hell my agent is, Vance. Finally gotten rid of him for your own gain?"
"I'd assume I have no idea what you are talking about, seeing as you haven't mentioned a name, Agent Gibbs," Vance said airily, sitting down and gesturing for the former Marine to do the same.
Gibbs didn't take the hint. "DiNozzo, Vance. Six-foot-two, my senior field agent, ring any bells?"
"Now that you mention it, yes. Is he the annoying one, talks all the time about movies?"
"Yeah. Now where is he?"
"Top secret, Gibbs. Don't like it, take it up with my superiors. Contrary to popular belief, I don't hold all the damn cards in this game, Agent. Now, if you have a real problem, feel free to stop by and see me. Until then, please do not waste any more of my time."
Gibbs growled, leaning over the desk. "This is a real problem! One of my agents is missing, and you aren't doing a damn thing to find him!"
Vance smiled like the cat who had the canary. "Unfortunately for you, Gibbs, you can't report anybody missing for at least twenty-four hours. Which isn't until tomorrow. I'd assume you'll hear from him later. He has his habits, you know. Now please, get out."
Gibbs knew full-well that Vance was referring to Tony's playboy nature, and narrowed his eyes. "Fine," he spat, stalking out the door.
Vance shook his head. "I should've known this would be a problem," he sighed.
FIVE MONTHS LATER: June 15, 2010: Washington, D.C.
1300 Hours
Tony DiNozzo stood outside the familiar building, his face a little more angular, a little more facial hair, a little less weight, but all in one piece.
"Welcome home," he whispered, shouldering the bag that had slid from his arm and walking inside. He had a deal to collect from a man upstairs.
And stopping it there. This should be a short story (meaning it will be finished well before the deadline), with flashbacks occurring throughout the next chapter(s) about his time in Somalia busting pirates! Hope you liked this first chapter, especially Easier than eating two pies.
I do not know the first thing about how one reports a missing person in DC, I'm going with how it goes for here in Wisconsin and a few other places. I do know it is between 24 and 48 hours.
Also: no idea what to call this story, so if you have a better song title that I could call it, this would be greatly appreciated. Please try to make it something that is a kind of sad song, but a bit cheerful.
Cheers!