Disclaimer: I do not own NCIS or its characters

Note: I just wanted to say thank you to all who have favorited, followed, or commented on this story. I usually like to respond to you all individually, but life as made it so that that just isn't possible. So a huge THANK YOU goes to every single one of you for each of your comments and whatnot.

~~~~NCIS~~~~

Tony didn't know why he could never sleep long without his lover next to him in their bed. He would just roll over in his unconscious state and realize there was no warm body next to him. His heart would cry out, and he would slowly come back into the real world. He would immediately feel across the surface of the bed, just in case Gibbs was simply out of reach, and groan when he realized that his lover really wasn't in the bed with him. He'd open his eyes and stare at the ceiling for a moment before getting up to use the bathroom and brush his teeth. Then he'd go in search of Gibbs, needing to hug and kiss him good morning.

As Tony did just that this particular morning, he sleepily went down the stairs and into the living room, looking out into the driveway to see if Gibbs' car was still there. If it wasn't Tony would know that Gibbs had most likely gone out to get food to restock the fridge and cabinets or buy some more wood for his ongoing projects. Luckily, this morning, both of their cars were still in the driveway. Tony continued through the living room, past the table they didn't just use for eating, and into the kitchen. Going straight for the coffee maker, he turned it on so that he'd have fresh coffee. As Tony waited for the beverage to be made, he stood leaning against the counter. He sleepily noticed that there were no other sounds in the house beside the gurgling of the coffee. Tony's brow furrowed. If Gibbs were down in the basement, he'd heard the sanding or sawing or whatever he was doing as well as his footsteps and the clanging of tools. He knew Gibbs wasn't in either of the showers. So where was he?

As the coffee was finally done, he reached to the cabinet closest to the window to take out the sugar. But as his eyes caught movement beyond the glass, he looked out into their backyard. It was Gibbs. 'What is he doing?' Tony thought to himself. He watched as his lover stood unmoving in the middle of the yard by where Tony knew the birdbath and small garden were, even if his lover's body was blocking it. Gibbs back was to Tony so he couldn't tell what he was doing. For a few minutes, his lover stood still as a statue. Just as Tony was ready to go out and ask what he was doing, a small bird (possibly a sparrow) flew off away from Gibbs, who watched it with a small, gentle, proud smile on his face.

Tony's confusion only increased as Gibbs continued to watch it until the bird was out of sight. Then he nodded his head once with his signature, proud smirk, as if reassuring himself he'd just done a good job, then turned and walked back to the house. Tony continued to take out the sugar and then went to the fridge to get the milk. As he loaded both into his cup, his lover finally came through the door.

When he saw Tony, he smiled warmly, "Morning bed bug."

Tony chuckled and smiled warmly back, "Morning sexy."

Gibbs' eyes brightened as they always did when Tony called him some kind of petname (as long as it wasn't too cute or annoying like honeybear or pookie or sweetheart), and he came over to wrap his arms around Tony, giving him a good morning kiss along the way. Tony happily responded, hugging Gibbs tightly and deepening the kiss. He loved these sweet, simple moments, and he knew that, even if he wouldn't admit it to anyone besides maybe Tony, Gibbs loved these moments too. When Gibbs finally pulled away, he went the few extra steps to the fridge and opened it up, "Ya hungry?"

Tony smirk, "Do you even have to ask?"

Gibbs chuckled, "No… Let me rephrase that. What are ya hungry for?"

Tony sipped as his coffee as he thought for a second. Then he answered, "Pancakes? And scrambled eggs?"

"Sure! Coming right up."

Tony and Gibbs had this semi-regular system of Gibbs making breakfast and Tony making dinner. Sometimes they would switch like when Tony wanted cowboy-style steak and Gibbs wanted ones of Tony's three-meat-and-cheese omelets. Other times, Gibbs would take Tony to his favorite diner where he got his favorite cup of morning coffee for breakfast, Tony would take Gibbs to his favorite restaurant for dinner, or they would just order take-out if they were too lazy. It was nice, easy, and Tony and Gibbs relished the fact that they fit together so easily.

As Gibbs started cooking, Tony went to sit at the little kitchen table to drink his coffee and wait. He watched Gibbs move, admiring him. Then finally, Tony couldn't take it anymore. He nonchalantly asked, "Speaking of eggs, what were you doing earlier? In the backyard?"

Gibbs didn't turn around as he shrugged, "A bird flew into the window."

Tony waited for his lover to elaborate, but of course, he didn't. "Huh?" Tony said with his brows furrowed and his head tilted to one side.

Gibbs lowered the heat on the skillet and turned around. He looked right at Tony and explained, "A bird flew into the window. And ya know how they get all stunned and disoriented after that happens?" Tony nodded. "Well for some it takes longer than others- sometimes too long. So I go out, pick them up, and hold them up on the birdbath until they reorient themselves and fly away. I think being off the ground helps them recover faster."

It was times like these that still managed to shock Tony. He knew that over the course of them being together, Gibbs had learned to be more open, honest, and talkative with Tony. And Tony loved that fact, felt beyond blessed that Gibbs felt comfortable and loved him enough to be so free with his secrets, past, mannerisms, whatever, but it still shocked him. So after a minute of just staring at Gibbs as the information soaked in, Tony finally said, "Why?"

"Why does being off the ground help them?"

"No," Tony shook his head, "Why do you do it?"

Gibbs looked thoughtful for a moment, as if he didn't really know why he did it. Then he said, "Well it used to be Shannon's thing. She was always so compassionate with animals. She taught Kelly to do it too. She would always beg me to go outside and help the poor bird that crashed and fell." Gibbs got that small smile and faraway look he always got when remembering happy memories of his girls. Tony smiled too whenever Gibbs shared his memories. Now was no different. "I never really understood the point, but I would do it. And every time the bird flew away, Kelly and Shannon would get this proud, happy smile. Kelly would always wave and shout goodbye to the bird." Gibbs chuckled at this and so did Tony. "After they were gone, I kept doing it because I would hear Kelly's voice pestering me to go help. But then after a while, I noticed it made me feel good to watch them fly away. Not just because my girls would be proud but because it made me feel good to help even a life as small as a birds."

Tony waited for Gibbs to come back from his memories. He knew Gibbs returned when his eyes unclouded and became focused on him. Tony smiled, "You looked really proud of yourself when it flew away."

Gibbs smiled shyly and turned back to the pancakes and eggs. Tony smiled to himself and stood up. He went behind Gibbs and hugged him, pressing his front against Gibbs' back. He rested his head on Gibbs' shoulder and hummed in appreciation. Gibbs relaxed against his lover and placed one arm across Tony's around his waist. Tony kissed the back of Gibbs' neck and whispered, "Thank you for sharing that memory Jethro."

He knew Gibbs still found it odd that Tony was so accepting of Gibbs' foot in the past, actually wanting to hear about them and include them in some of the stuff they did. Tony knew it would take a lot of reassuring to get Gibbs to realize that he didn't want Gibbs to keep his life with them and his life with him separate, that he loved hearing about them and getting to know them through Gibbs' memories of them. He loved every part of Jethro, and he wasn't about to let Gibbs forget the two people whom were so important to him.

"You're welcome Tone."

Tony kissed the back of his neck once more time before saying, "Be right back."

Gibbs nodded.

Tony untangled himself from Jethro and went upstairs to their bedroom. He opened his bedside table drawer and reached for his notebook. He then reached for the pen and quickly wrote the next quirk. "Gibbs' Quirk Number 30: rescues birds after the fly into the windows and stays with them until they fly away."