Okay, since I'm doing a lot of flashing back as well as some dream sequences and whatnot the breakdown is listed below:

flashbacks: italic, left-aligned

dreams: italic, centre-aligned

written: bold, centre-aligned

non-English language: italic and bold (since I'm too lazy and not proficient enough in many languages everything will be written in English and you can just use your imaginations.)

Sorry about the lapse in updates. First my internet was down, then I got struck with writers block, then I forgot about this story completely and... well, sorry.

Also, now that the new season has begun this story is AU.

Clicking the safety back on his gun, Tony set it down on one of the small tables in the room before sitting down on the beat-up couch and looking at his unexpected and unwanted guest, wanting an explanation more than anything else at the moment. When the other man didn't offer up any information Tony spoke, knowing that that was the younger man's intention—Tony had trained him, after all—but being too impatient to wait his visitor out.

"What the hell are you doing here, McGee? And how the hell did you find me?"

Tony wasn't sure what he expected in response, but the words that came out of his former protégé's mouth were definitely the last ones he thought he's be hearing at three in the morning in the house that he hadn't even thought NCIS knew about.

"Gibbs was killed. Three days ago."

"Who?" Tony asked, dreading the answer but knowing that he needed to hear it.

McGee sat down in a chair facing Tony. Still in a drab blue suit, Timothy McGee looked exactly the same yet completely different. Tony knew that the job had started getting to the MIT grad, that McGee was facing the horrors of the world head on and that he had become a different person because of it. Tony knew that feeling well.

"Ari," McGee said, his voice hard and angry. Tony had never heard the younger man sound that way.

Tony exhaled heavily. He had wanted, more than anything, to kill Ari with his bare hands after Kate had been killed, and now, hearing that his mentor—a man Tony had always secretly thought to be invincible—was also dead by Ari's hand, Tony found his need for revenge—preferably bloody—growing.

"That's why I'm here," McGee continued, calmer now. He leaned forward. "We need you back, Tony. Right now I'm the only one with any real knowledge outside the files on Ari and what I have is second and third hand. All the things you dug up before you left have either run dry or been false leads to begin with, but we haven't been able to get anything more since you took off."

"I did not take off, McGee."

"You left with no warning, e-mailed your resignation to Gibbs, and left almost everything you owned in your apartment for the landlord to deal with," McGee said.

Tony relented. "Okay, I took off. But I had my reasons, and they still stand. I'm not going back. I'm sorry about Gibbs, I really am, but I left NCIS a long time ago. I've moved on."

"Alright. But, just so you know, I'm under orders not to leave until you agree to come back to NCIS, even if it's only temporary," McGee said. He leaned back in his chair. "I wonder how much it'd cost to have my stuff shipped out here…"

Growling Tony stood up. "Get out of my house, McGee. I'll go back to NCIS and take down Ari, but I'm not working any other cases. Once Ari is dead or locked up I'm out and you can forget you know where I am, understood?"

McGee nodded. "Flight leaves at ten, I'll pick you up. I've already spoken to your boss. He's transferred you to NCIS for a period no longer than twelve months. We can go over the rest of the details on the flight," the younger man said as he stood up and headed for the door. He paused in the doorway. "I understand why you left, Tony. We all did. But… once this is all over… we, uh… miss you around the office."

"Goodnight, Probie," Tony said with a half smile as McGee moved through the doorway. He put his hand on the knob to push the door closed, but he hesitated only long enough for McGee to protest the hated nickname.

"I made full agent before you left, Tony."

Tony smiled. "I know," he replied before closing and locking the door behind his reluctant former protégé.

Even though he knew he had a lot to do before McGee returned to pick him up, Tony decided to try to get some more sleep before packing and making sure the house would be able to sit for what could potentially be an entire year without his presence.

He wasn't sure how he'd managed to convince her to join him, but somehow he had managed to get Kate to accompany him to a double feature at his favourite movie theatre. His favourite person by his side—diet coke and unbuttered popcorn in hand—and The Duke on the big screen made the evening pretty much perfect.

Of course he couldn't get the taste of her non-fat-tofu-wrap out of his mouth, but he figured it was a small price to pay. One light meal at Kate's restaurant of choice before five hours of classic movie viewing. He was pleased that he was definitely coming out on top of the deal.

"See, this isn't so bad," Tony said as he held down Kate's seat for her.

"I'm still not too sure about the movies, but I'm keeping an open mind," Kate said fairly as she got settled in the well-padded seat. She worried her bottom lip between her teeth for a moment before turning slightly so that she was facing me. "Do you have any plans for tomorrow night?"

"Unless Gibbs calls, no. Why?"

"Well, I managed to get courtside seats to the Knicks game tomorrow and my date bailed on me… I know it's completely last minute, probably insultingly so, but I know you like pro ball and… well, I'd like for you to come with me," Kate said, flustered.

Tony grinned. "Like a date?" he asked.

"Only if you want it to be," Kate said, blushing.

The theatre darkened and the previews started rolling. Kate turned back to face the screen and, after a few minutes of watching Kate rolling her eyes at the immature comedies coming out and tensing up when an ad for a horror flick rolled around, Tony turned as well.

Several hours later Tony unlocked the passenger side door of his car. "Before I answer you about the game… who were you planning on going with, originally?" he asked, his hip resting on the door so Kate couldn't escape like she was known to do when things got personal. Tony wanted to go, not only because it had been so long since he'd been to a game, but also because it was another excuse to spend time with Kate away from murders and drug deals and all the other fun things that came with their jobs, but he didn't want to be her last choice for Sunday night companionship. He didn't even really like being second choice, but, depending on her answer, he was sure he'd be able to find it in himself to deal with it.

"My friend, Alyson."

"The red-head?" Tony asked.

"That's Alexia. Alyson is blonde," Kate said. "We were planning this for a while... but her boyfriend is leaving for a business trip on Monday and they want some time alone before he leaves. I really don't want to be the loser sitting court-side all alone… please say you'll come?"

"Courtside?" Tony asked, quirking an eyebrow at his partner. Kate nodded. "You're on. What time do we have to leave to get there on time?" he asked, knowing Kate would have the transport time all figured out already.

Kate didn't disappoint.

"There's a shuttle at ten tomorrow morning. We could catch that, spend some time in the city before the game, then take the shuttle back home after," she said.

"I'll pick you up," Tony said, leaning in and quickly brushing his lips over Kate's before moving away from the door and pulling it open so that she could slip inside.

Tony woke up from his pleasant dream with a smile on his face. Even before the nightmares started he had rarely had good dreams, so whenever he did get blessed with enjoyable sub-conscious imaginings he took as much joy in it as he could.

After a quick shower Tony packed some clothes and a few belongings into a suitcase and set it down by the door. While his coffee was dripping into the pot he went next door to let Donna know he would be out of town for a while.

Emily answered the door after peeking through the window beside the door. "Mr. DiNozzo!" she said happily, all bouncing pigtails and Tigger pyjamas and freckles. "Mommy, Mr. DiNozzo's here!" she called as she grabbed Tony's hand and dragged him inside the house.

"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Tony?" he asked the girl.

"Mommy says it's not right," Emily replied as she led him to the kitchen.

"Morning, Tony," Donna said, reaching into the cupboard for a second coffee mug. "Coffee?" she asked, holding the cup loosely.

"No time," Tony said apologetically. To be perfectly honest he wasn't sure he could even touch the coffee that had automatically started making itself back at his place. Coffee automatically made him think of Gibbs. "Can we talk?" he asked, not wanting to talk about what he had to do in front of the girls.

Donna nodded. "Grils, why don't you go pick out your clothes and start getting ready for Nana to pick you up?" she said to her daughters.

"Okay, mommy," Emily and Amy replied before running to the stairs that led to their bedrooms.

"What's going on?" Donna asked Tony.

Tony sighed. "A friend of mine… my boss back at NCIS… he was killed by the same man that killed Kate," he said. Donna knew all about Kate. She was the only person he had been able to talk to about his past and about his nightmares. "Apparently the team thinks that having me back will help catch this guy…"

"I understand," Donna said sincerely. "When do you leave?"

Looking at his watch Tony cringed. "Any minute."

"NCIS gives lots of notice, huh?" Donna said sympathetically. Tony smiled softly. "Well, be safe. And keep in touch. The girls are going to miss you... and so am I," she admitted.

"I'll be fine," Tony promised, hugging his friend tightly. "I should go. I'll call tonight, if that's alright."

"You never have to ask if you can call, Tony," Donna reminded him. She looked out the window. "There's a suit walking up to your door."

Tony joined her at the window and shook his head when he spotted McGee. Even when they were going to be flying across the country he still wore a suit. "That's my ride. I'll talk to you later," he said, giving Donna a bright smile before heading out of the house again. Tony cut across the lawn and told McGee he'd meet him in the car. Once the younger agent was gone Tony went inside and grabbed his hastily packed bag and turned to leave. He got halfway to his bedroom door when he stopped, turned around, and went back to pick up the picture of himself with Kate that he had put beside his bed the night before.

That he was taking with him.

"How are things other than… this?" Tony asked, unable to voice any mention of Gibb's fate.

"Pretty good. Ducky finally got rid of Palmer and his new assistant is actually able to control those stories of his a bit," McGee said as he picked at the label on his beer. "Abby met someone at a seminar on a new designer drug that she went to last year. They're getting married on November first."

Tony quirked an eyebrow at that. He'd never really figured Abby for the marrying type. "White gown?"

"Originally. She dyed it black herself. Apparently the salesperson almost had a heart attack when she asked for a black wedding dress," McGee said with a fond smile.

"What's he like?" Tony asked, less out of curiosity and more out of the big-brother feelings he had always had for the lab tech.

McGee shrugged. "Nick? He's a good guy. He runs the trace lab at the main Virginia Coroner's office; the one that's in that building that used to be the train station. Gibbs pulled the whole 'father' routine—cleaning his gun, Marine death glares, reading a background check on the guy right in front of him—but, surprisingly that didn't scare him off. Gibbs deemed him 'worthy'. But he also told Nick that if he hurt Abby he would make sure that Ducky ruled the cause of death as accidental."

"That sounds like Gibbs," Tony smiled. "And what about that moron… Agent Jackass?"

"Agent Jackson," McGee corrected. "He didn't last. After you left Gibbs started actually paying attention to Jackson's mistakes."

Tony nodded. He hadn't expected Jackson to last. "Who came in then?"

McGee sighed heavily. "A cop from Brooklyn who stuck around for almost four months before Gibbs got to him, three of Hoover's jaded best who didn't even stick around long enough to unpack, and, finally, a former Marine Major who resigned her commission after her fiancé was murdered by someone in his unit. She's acting team leader at the moment."

"Name?"

"Katrina Golden," McGee said as he pulled a file out of his backpack and handed it to Tony. "I figured you'd want to know who you're going to be working for."

For those of you who think that Tony caved a little too easily, the answer is simple and will be explained further in later chapters.

Also chapters will get longer, but I needed to establish some things before getting to the meat of the story.

What did you think?

Mel