Tony got home that night and immediately started to cook some dinner. He had a lot to think about for his future. He knew that Washington DC is an hour ahead of Mexico so he has time to call Gibbs after he eats something. He decided on a simple pasta dish of fettuccine alfredo with grilled chicken and broccoli for dinner.
He sat on the couch and turned on Magnum PI to watch while eating. He needs that background noise sometimes to think better. He watched an episode and grabbed a beer from the fridge before pulling out his phone. He was the only one on the team with Gibbs' new cell phone number. They all knew the number to Mike's place for emergencies but Gibbs gave Tony his number to keep in touch.
He usually calls about twice a week to get caught up and continue to improve their relationship with every new memory his boss gets back. He even got an emergency call at 3 am one day when the memory of the pneumonic plague came back to him. Gibbs made him schedule an appointment so that he could have proof of it. He also calls to talk about his classes and cases.
He sat back tonight and hit call, putting the phone on speaker so that he could put his head in his hands. The phone rang three times before it was picked up with a barked "Gibbs!". He let the familiarity wash over him for a second before replying.
"Hey boss. You busy?" He asked.
"Nah, not for you Tony. How have you been?" Gibbs said. He was currently sitting on the beach sipping a cheap beer.
"Been busy. I met with Tom Morrow today. Lot has changed since you left boss" Tony said.
"Sounds like it from what I have been able to pick up. What did you talk to Tom about?"
"Well you know how I talked about the problems I have been having with McGee and Ziva? We talked about some of that but we mostly talked about Jenny trying to force me into an unsanctioned undercover with no backup. She has been threatening to fire me if I do not take it. I recorded everything and had the file you recommended with all the complaints against the team and gave it to Tom. I do not want to lose my job but I am giving myself options and an out if I need it. I was hoping that I could stick around if you decide to come back or if you're not then I am going to leave NCIS I think. I am not appreciated and it is getting harder every day to go to work." Tony said with a tear slowly rolling down his cheek. His voice broke a couple of times.
"Oh son, I still need some time so if you need to leave you can. When I come back I may follow you because the agency I joined is not the one we have now. I may work as more of a consultant than back in the field as I am getting closer to mandatory retirement age. Now what is Tom going to do about it?" Gibbs said, rubbing a hand down his face in exhaustion. Tony DiNozzo could not catch a break could he?
"Tom is going to look at all the evidence and get back to me soon. I need to talk with him again before possibly going to Fornell at the FBI. There a lot that I am sensing wrong with things. You know I was never comfortable with Ziva's placement on the team and I have decided to have someone look into that I think because her security clearance is much too high for a liaison position." Tony said, making a note to do so after talking with Tom again.
"Okay Tony, keep me updated and call me more often if you need to son. I may be coming back soon to help you out but I wont be telling the team yet so please don't. If you need to come stay with me when I get back you are more than welcome to. Good luck with your classes and your thesis. Call me tomorrow son" Gibbs said. He was tired and he knew Tony must be as well. They hung up and both headed for an early night to think more.
The next month flew by for both of them talking often about what to do and cases, classes, and his thesis. He got to talk to a couple more undercover agents who went into organized crime so he could use quotes in his paper. He had the most fun making up fake names for them to preserve their identities much like he did for himself. He knew that everything outside of class could not be published under Tony DiNozzo but using his mothers maiden name was free to him.
He made a great deal of progress in the thesis even on track to finish it before the technical due date. He was rather proud of all the work he has done to achieve all this. He even had a couple passing thoughts about getting a doctorate but he realistically did not need one and paying the fees could just hinder him. He was proud of his degree in progress and was doing this fully for himself now.
He got closer with Jimmy Palmer and Ducky as well often escaping to autopsy during the day. They both knew about his degree and Ducky's stories were actually extremely helpful with the structure of organized crime for some reason. Ducky also has connections everywhere. He finished out the semester with the support of Jimmy, Ducky, Gibbs and Tom while keeping recording of what Ziva and Tim do. He did sit Tim down and have a talk with him where they both had issues with the other. Tim has been somewhat improving since then but he is apparently still the scared probie he was that stuttered around Gibbs.
He closed out the semester with another 4.0 GPA and accomplishments such as more publishments on papers and projects in classes. He got a stipend for teaching the summer class that was used towards paying for this last year and keeping student debt down. He was able to get a scholarship this year as an active federal employee and NCIS even paid part of the tuition.
He was ready for this last semester and possibly the biggest changes in his life in a while. He has another meeting with Tom coming up this winter between semesters to discuss the next course of action. He cannot put off Jenny much longer before she decided to fire him or worse mark his record where he cannot find another job in law enforcement.