Chapter 10

Settling in, for, Tony took a few weeks.

Not at any point did he ask Gibbs about his father, but Gibbs had been working behind the scenes to find out as much as he could.

Tony worked diligently throughout the day catching up on his schoolwork, however, he still refused to have a tutor. The nearest Gibbs could get him to agree to, was the teacher who lived down the road to pop over after work once a week, to set him work and mark what he had done in the previous week.

Gibbs waited in the diner as Judge Henry came in the door and shook off his umbrella.

"Horrible day isn't it Gibbs." Henry said as he sat down and nodded at Elaine for some coffee.

"Weatherman says it'll rain all week, Tony's going stir crazy." Gibbs admitted.

Henry looked up as Elaine poured him a coffee, "Thank you."

Gibbs waited until she went back to the kitchen.

"So…" He prompted.

"I talked to Anthony DiNozzo Senior's lawyers," Henry said not sounding impressed. "They have added a few stipulations, but agree in principle to your adoption of Tony."

"Stipulations?" Gibbs asked sounding slightly surprised. DiNozzo...whether it was Sal or actually Tony's father still remained to be seen. At this point even Gibbs wasn't sure who had died the night he and Tony had met.

"Stipulations...Apparently it is tradition for the DiNozzo's to attend Remington Military Academy. A stipend will be provided for the school fees and anything else he needs to fully attend that school."

Gibbs nodded. He had heard of Remington, it was a good school, although Tony wasn't old enough to attend yet.

"The stipulations are that after graduation from Remington, Anthony DiNozzo Junior apply to Harvard or another good business school.

"Ok, I can't see a problem in that." Gibbs said after all applying was not the same as attending.

"Also until he is 21, Anthony DiNozzo Junior is not to go into New York or any of the boroughs, Nor is he to enter Long Island or contact any of his grandfather's family." The judge gave a smirk at that.

Gibbs grinned, "So, I'm not to let Tony anywhere near his Mafia family in New York? I think I can agree to that."

The judge nodded, "Thought you might. Senior would like to be sent a copy of his school report each year and to have a visit with his son twice a year."

"Visit?"

"Apparently the Elder DiNozzo is keen to keep his grandson safe, which is why he has allowed the adoption, but he wants his son to keep in contact however briefly with his father."

"Are we really sure that Senior is his father?" Gibbs asked.

Judge Henry shrugged, "Tony says he is, his family say he is, I really don't know how else to check."

Gibbs understood, apart from the fact that he knew one of the DiNozzo brothers had died that night, there really was no way of telling them apart.

"Is that it?" Gibbs asked.

"One last thing, DiNozzo is not to go to public school, again it's fear that enemies of his family will find him and hurt him."

"I'll find a private school, hopefully somewhere nearby."

"If you accept, then we go to court, do the paperwork and Tony is your son….in all but name."

Gibbs smiled as he took a sip of his coffee. Finally he had a family again, He couldn't believe how this kid who had wandered into his home on a cold, wet, night had snuck his way into his heart.

"Can you fit us in tomorrow morning?" Gibbs asked.

"Sure, 9am be ok for you, I have a case starts at 9.30 so I can fit you in."

"Thanks."

Tony looked out of the window at the pouring rain. He hated being stuck inside but Gibbs had gone to a meeting with the judge and he had work to catch up on.

He was looking forward to starting school, there was a good local school down the street and he had seen a few of the neighborhood kids walking to school in the mornings, chatting and playing basketball and he longed to join them.

He looked over as Gibbs' truck rolled to a halt in the driveway and he got out carrying what looked suspiciously like Pizza.

Tony grinned and ran down the stairs.

"Hey Gibbs, is that pizza?"

"Sausage, Cheese and Pepperoni, extra large." He placed it on the table as Tony pulled up to a halt.

"Bad news pizza?" He asked.

"Not exactly." Gibbs got a couple of plates and set them down on the table, pouring them two glasses of soda to go with them.

Tony pushed the pizza around his plate, waiting for Gibbs to fill him in, "We sign the papers for your adoption tomorrow, but your father has put some rules in place."

"What are they?" Tony asked worried.

"You need to keep your name. We have to send him school reports and you have to go to private school."

"I can live with that." Tony replied not really caring where he went to school.

"And Senior wants at least two visits with you a year." Gibbs added on.

"What! Why?" Tony dropped his slice of pizza and stood up.

"I don't know, but they will be supervised and he will not be able to take you anywhere, alright?"

"But…." Tony looked panicked. "Last time he took me away…"

Tony stopped, he didn't want to remind Gibbs what had happened the last time he had been told he was going to visit with his father, and what had happened to Shannon and Kelly straight afterwards.

"It's different this time." Gibbs promised, "I will be here and I will be your father."

"No," Tony corrected him, "Senior will always be my father. You are my dad, there is a difference."

Gibbs nodded, happy at the slot Tony had picked for him.

"So, you eat...show me what you've been doing since I've been out and then we'll watch a movie later?"

Tony grinned as he moved to attack his pizza with gusto, "Sure thing Pops…"

Gibbs gave a halfhearted glare at his soon to be son, "Ok...Dad." Tony grinned with his mouthful of pizza.

Gibbs shook his head in amazement at the moods his son seemed to pick up, live with him was going to be anything but dull.

Tony had been living with Gibbs for all of two years before Jethro started dating again and then a year later, he married a woman named Rebecca.

She had been nice and attentive to him while Gibbs had been dating her. But since they had been married her reactions to Tony had rapidly gone downhill.

Tony exited the school bus at the corner of the street and hauled his bag over his shoulder realizing that his dad was working and hadn't made it home before him.

He sighed and trudged up the path to the front door.

"I'm home!" He called out.

"Oh, HI!" Rebecca called brightly as she leaned against the door frame in the kitchen.

From where he stood by the door he could smell the alcohol coming off her in waves.

"A little early don't you think?" The teenager drawled derisively as he dropped his bag down.

"I don't know what you mean." She argued as she took a few steps forward and fell into the armchair.

Tony sighed, "You're as drunk as a skunk Rebecca. Dad's gonna pitch a fit if he sees you."

Her face fell, "He never sees me, he's always working or in his basement or spending time with you." She complained.

"He has a hard job." Tony argued as he helped lift her into the chair. She was quite slim and beautiful, but for a fifteen year old, she was still quite a weight to move.

"Maybe I should spend time with you?" Rebecca suggested wiggling her eyebrows and placing a drunken hand on Tony's ass.

"Ew…" Tony took a step away from her looking at her disgustedly.

"See even you won't look at me."

"I'm fifteen!"

He moved to the kitchen to make her a coffee to sober up. He knew Gibbs loved her and didn't want his dad to be upset by finding out his new wife was a drunk. After all he had never seen her like this, so he still thought, she was wonderful. Tony loved his dad and didn't want to see the same look on his face he'd had the night Diane left him.

"Come on, let's get you sobered up before dad comes home." He sat her at the table and handed her the sweetened coffee.

Rebecca stared into the darkened depths of the cup, "What's wrong with me Tony? I don't get it. He looked excited when you go to talk to him, and when I do he gets a migraine." She took a big gulp of her coffee and grimaced at the taste, "And he drinks so much of this stuff, it's foul!"

Tony gave a half-hearted grin, "Yeah but it's good for you." he pushed handing her a second cup and a couple of tylenol. "We need to get you showered and changed." He said taking the cup and leading her upstairs, "Dad'll smell the booze on your clothes, you finish this and get in the shower, I'll put the laundry on and get dinner started." He said as he pushed her in the bedroom and waited as a pile of clothes were dropped outside the door.

With a sigh he took them and headed downstairs to put them in the machine and the laundry he started last night into the dryer.

Then he climbed the stairs and started the water boiling for pasta as he heard the shower running upstairs.

He took his books out and as the meal was cooking started on his homework when something caught his eye. It wasn't much, but it got him wondering.

A lone sock on the floor by the back door.

He walked over and picked it up. It wasn't his, it was too small. He was sure it wasn't his father's either, but with a shrug he took it downstairs and dropped it in the basket of normal laundry to be done later.

An hour later, freshly showered and slightly more with it Rebecca, in clean jeans and a t-shirt and wearing an apron tied around her middle came downstairs.

"So what am I cooking tonight?" She asked Tony as he looked up at her.

"I dunno, I'm making pasta." Tony groused, he was tired and the math problems were driving him insane.

Rebecca hit him around the back of the head. "Don't talk back to me young man."

"You hit me!" Tony exclaimed in surprise.

Rebecca gave a nasty smile, "I talked to your father today, he said it was the only way to make you behave."

Tony looked confused. "Dad never hits me." He stated, which for the most part was true. The odd light tap here and there to help him focus but never a smack with that amount of force.

"I didn't say I was talking to Jethro." Rebecca corrected him, "Your father called, he's coming over tomorrow for a visit. I called Jethro and agreed to supervise you both all afternoon."

"But…." Tony looked worried.

"It'll be fiiiine Tony," She trilled, "I'll be there with you…"

Tony looked at her worried, he had a bad feeling in his gut.

Jethro sat eating the meal his wife had cooked and looked lovingly over at her and his son, both eating in silence. It was rare when it happened but sometimes he enjoyed the peace at a meal.

He let it continue for a few moments, then he turned to Rebecca, "This is a wonderful meal hun." he said gracing her with a smile.

"Thank you, it took me hours, I found the recipe in a magazine."

Gibbs looked over at his son, "It's good isn't it Tony." He prompted.

Tony gave a halfhearted smile, "I couldn't have made better myself." he replied, thanking God for rule 7.

"Did Becca tell you about your dad's visit tomorrow?" Gibbs asked.

Tony sighed, "Can't you be here for it?" He all but begged.

"I'm sorry, Mike has me looking into a case, I have to go to Fairfax for the day. Becca will be here and Senior knows not to take you out of the house alone."

Tony relaxed a bit, "Ok then, but you'll be back as soon as you can?" he asked.

"Of course I will, the paperwork for Remington came back today, you finish up this year at Potomac and then you should be free to start Remington next year. Show Senior the paperwork, at least he'll know then that we applied."

"Do I have to go?" Tony enquired. He didn't want to leave his friends at Potomac but he knew that Remington had been a stipulation of his adoption and he was going to have to go someday.

Gibbs just ate his pasta, knowing he wasn't in the mood to have this conversation again with his son. His gut was off, and he was pretty sure it had to do with this case his boss had him investigating. But he would have to wait for answers until tomorrow.