Is This Really Goodbye?

The Cop and The Con Series

Part 26

AN: I had to do a WC Season Finale tag with NCIS, too. I just couldn't pass up that wonderful bit of angst I could create. I hope you guys enjoy. And, as always, if you see any typos, grammar goofs, etc., please PM me. Also, thanks for the reading, reviewing, and alerting. This is not the end of this series either. I love my fellas way, way too much. JL

Tony put the phone down. He shook his head as the tears come to his eyes. He didn't want the rest of the team to see him cry. He wiped his eyes quickly. He would save that until he was at home, or until he got a chance to be alone.

Gibbs noticed an immediate change in his agent. He saw DiNozzo's demeanor change as soon as he had hung up the phone. They had a crime scene to get to, and the team leader hoped his could get some information out of his senior agent on the way.

Tony and the rest of the team got into the car. And immediately things were strange. Tony didn't talk. He barely said anything, that is, until he turned to Gibbs.

"I…I have to go to New York." Tony stated.

Gibbs waited for just a moment or two before he spoke. He knew there was more to it.

Tony sighed. When he turned and looked at Gibbs again there were tears in his eyes. "Neal…he's gone. That was Peter/ Agent Burke on the phone. He said…he…Neal was…shot in the chest. He…he died on the way to the hospital."

Gibbs, Tim, and Ellie didn't know what to say. They had all met the young man and had all come to like him. They knew of Tony's history with the young man. They knew how hard Tony would take losing his little brother.

Gibbs surprised them all by turning the car around and heading back to the office.

"You go to New York, DiNozzo." Gibbs said as he drove back to the Naval Yard. "Give Peter, El, and June our condolences." He parked the car in front of the building so that Tony could get out. "Go talk to Vance about a few days off, Son. Take whatever time you need. We'll be fine 'till you get back."

Tony nodded. He was still in a daze over Neal's death. Gibbs' reaction just added to it. The senior agent slowly got out of the car. He stood and watched Gibbs car leave the yard. He then went inside and upstairs to talk to Vance. To DiNozzo's surprise, Vance didn't object. The director quickly signed a leave form and then had his secretary even make flight arrangements. All Tony had to do was to go home and pack.

No, that was not all Tony had to do. He had to go and talk to Abby and Ducky. He had forgotten all about them for a second. He knew that Abby had taken a real liking to Neal and Ducky and Neal had had interesting conversations about the places they had both travelled to, comparing notes, at times. And Jimmy had been impressed with Neal's knowledge of anatomy. Neal had come across a book in the prison library and had found it fascinating reading, much to his own surprise. The conman had also been amazed at just how much he had actually remembered.

Tony broke the news to Ducky and Jimmy first. He saved Abby for last because he was just not sure how hard she would take it. And the agent had played it correctly. Tony had had to lend Abby his shoulder for a good 10 minutes. She then wiped her eyes and told him to have a safe trip and to give the Burkes her regrets.

Finally, about two hours later, Tony was packed and on a flight to New York.

Tony landed in New York City a few hours later and grabbed a cab. He headed to June's place first. He wanted to go talk to Peter as soon as possible. But he needed to check on June and see how she was doing. Carlotta let Tony in and led him into the living room. As it turned out, June already had guests. El was sitting on the couch beside June. And Peter, Diana, and Jones came back down the stairs as Tony walked in. The White Collar agents had been up in Neal's apartment. They were looking for answers to the questions they had about Neal's death. The three had gone over the place as well as they could. They couldn't find anything.

Tony greeted June, El, and the agents. Tony, June, and Peter took seats in the living room. Then Peter sent Jones and Diana went back to the office.

"Peter, thanks for calling me." Tony stated. "I really wanted to make sure that June was okay. Then I was going to come by the office."

Peter nodded. "I know how Neal felt about you. You were his big brother. I just thought you needed to know."

"How long will you be here?" El asked.

"I don't know. My boss has given me a week, if I want it." Tony explained.

"You can stay as long as you want, Tony." June said, opening her home to him.

"Thank you, June." The NCIS agent replied. "I really appreciate it."

"What…how did it happen? Who shot him?" Tony asked, still thinking that it was all a big joke, a mistake, and that Neal would be coming down those stairs at any moment. The kept looking towards the staircase.

Peter shook his head and sighed. "An old enemy, somebody who…who just wouldn't leave Neal alone. I'm not sure if Neal told you…but he used to play chess with the guy in prison."

Tony nodded. He remembered the conman mentioning the guy, a few times. "I do remember that guy." He shook his head. He remembered something else, also. "The same bastard who kidnapped El?"

Peter nodded. "Matthew Kellar…he's no longer with us. If I had shot him two seconds before I did. Neal would still be alive."

Tony shook his head. He smiled, though it was a sad one. "Neal told me he would probably die one of two ways. At the hands of one of the guys you put away. Or he would live to be an old man and die sitting on a beach in Barbados." Peter didn't say anything, so Tony continued. "Neal liked working with you, Peter. He said he could see the other side of things now. He could see how his actions had hurt people. He thought…he was just taking 'objects.' That all they were was something to use to make money. He had no idea how much some of those things had meant to the people who had owned them. He had never dreamed that just the act of taking a thing could actually ruin a person's life." Tony revealed to them. "Caffrey had started on this whole thing just to get out of jail, to avoid prison time. He didn't expect to learn anything. He thought he knew it all." Tony smiled at the memory of his friend's cocky little grin and his mannerisms. The act he put on for other people. "He'd made his confession in one of the long conversations we used to have the first 6 months he started working for White Collar. It took him that long to get used to it all. He told me that he hadn't expected it to be so hard being on the 'other side.'"

"What do you mean?" Peter asked. Neal had never really told him any of this.

"It was hard for him to flip the switch and look at things from our side." Tony explained. "He really had a hard time getting past the fact that people attached a lot of feelings to those objects. He never had anything handed down to him like that. He never had any of those types of attachments. And he always thought that everything could be bought. You just had to be willing to pay the price." Tony paused. "You helped him to see that value. I mean, to him, it was a victimless crime."

"For such a smart guy…" Peter started.

"I know." Tony replied. "He just…Neal didn't have it easy, and so he thought if things were that…simple, that easy, there had to be strings attached."

Both Peter and El nodded. They had both seen that cynicism in Neal.

"Then June came along and offered him a home. Probably the first real home he ever had in his adult life." Tony looked at June and took her hand. "He thought a great deal of you. I hope you know that."

June nodded as she searched for a tissue to dab her eyes.

"And then you, El, came along and offered him real friendship." The agent replied. "You didn't try to change him. You didn't ask anything of him, except friendship. I really think that that kind of threw him at first. He was not sure what your 'angle' was. It took him a long time to realize you didn't have an angle." Tony smiled. "He thought of you as his little sister."

El was not able to speak as she wiped the tears from her eyes. She nodded also.

Peter fought the tears that were coming. He had not wanted to cry. He had actually thought he couldn't cry anymore. It had been excruciatingly painful to be there to see Neal shot. But, at the same time, he would not have wanted Neal to be alone. He had been with Neal in his last moments. He had been so grateful for the opportunity to provide the young man support and comfort.

Tony fell silent as he felt himself choke up. He knew his voice would crack if he tried to speak. He had cried on the plane. He had been glad that the flight had not been packed. He had been able to fly without a seat mate, so he got to skip all that drama. But two of the flight attendants had stopped by his seat a few times to see if he needed something and to ask if he was okay.

"You, Peter," Tony started again, when he had recovered. "…you were a lot more than a handler to him. He thought of you as a big brother, too. And, at times, a father figure. He so appreciated the opportunity you gave him. He was…he was too smart for his own good, sometimes. But, Neal was able to recognize a great opportunity when he saw it. And I know he made your lives hell, sometimes." The agent paused. "But, he was so very grateful to you all."

The Burkes and June had been planning the funeral. They invited Tony to help, if he wanted. Tony knew immediately what he wanted to do. He had videos of himself and Neal singing from when they had their duo, Wayward Son. He had also made other recordings of himself and Neal on other occasions, even recent ones. He had had them all put on a DVD, of which he had sent a copy to Neal. Tony even knew where Neal kept it. He excused himself and headed upstairs. After he had told the Burkes and June that Neal had a DVD he needed. He told them that it was he and Neal on the CD. But that was all the information Tony would give. Except to say that they would really like what they saw. Tony wanted it to be a surprise. He knew that seeing the performances would bring up some great memories for him. He hoped it would give everyone who attended the funeral a different look and a new prospective on the man they thought that they knew.

The DVD of Tony's and Neal's performances had the desired effect. Tony had only planned on playing a few select performances from the DVD. There had been a few particular performances that he and Neal had particularly liked. There had been a couple of songs that they had performed that were their favorites. And, of course, the attendees would get to see both he and Neal grow up, right before their very eyes, from awkward boys of 13 and 14 years old to the present. The NCIS agent had found that after the service no one had gotten up to leave. There has been a mixed reaction. There were people in tears, feeling the loss of the young con very acutely. And there were other's with huge grins on their faces. They were astounded by the young man's talent. And they were pleased that they would have such wonderful memories to take with them. But, the most amazing thing was that everyone in the church kept their seats until they had watched every performance.

Tony stood up and wiped the tears from his eyes. He then took a seat at the piano and played and sang one last 'duet' with his dear friend.

It was almost 1 year later, to the day, when Tony received a letter from France in the mail. He opened the envelope. He pulled out the contents and dropped onto his sofa in complete surprise. He then smiled broadly as he turned the Origami crane over in his hands.

THE END

More Neal and Tony Adventures to Come!

END NOTES: Again, as I stated in my AN, this is not the last story in this series, especially since both series are essentially over for me. (NCIS will never be the same, regardless of who they put in there.) I ended the story like this because I love that last lasting image. I didn't tell you which songs Neal and Tony performed together because I didn't want to ruin it for you readers. Since we all don't like the same music, I wanted to let you pick the songs you wanted. There are two given ones: Heaven, by Bryan Adams and Wayward Son, by Kansas. But the rest are entirely up to you. And as always, if you see any typos, grammar goofs, etc., PM me. Thanks, in advance, for reading, reviewing, and alerting. I hope you enjoyed. JL