Tony awoke on Saturday morning with a splitting headache. Groaning, he pulled the blanket over his head.

"Get up, DiNozzo. Work isn't going to wait," said Gibbs gently.

Tony groaned again. "Go away," he pleaded.

"No can do, buddy."

"Buddy?"

"Yes, buddy. You are my buddy, Tony. Don't you remember our conversation last night?"

Tony shook his head. "I don't remember coming here."

"Okay. It's a good thing that you came by cab then." Gibbs grinned. "Come on, breakfast is ready, along with a couple of Tylenol tablets. You can shower after you eat."

Tony grumbled underneath his breath as he climbed out of the bed. He moved slowly into the hallway, then took the stairs two at a time. He was hungry, more than normal, and knew it was because he had been drinking heavily the night before.

Down in the kitchen, Gibbs placed a plate of pancakes in front of Tony. A cup of coffee appeared next to it, followed by a glass of water and two tablets.

"Eat, then take them. It'll work better that way," said Gibbs.

Tony scowled but followed the instructions. He was relieved when he managed to keep down two pancakes. Tossing down the tablets with water, Tony drank down half the coffee and stood.

"You okay, Tony?"

"Fine. I'm going to shower." Tony headed up to his room and grabbed a suit he always kept there for this exact reason.

Tony put his head against the back of his seat while Gibbs drove, somewhat slowly, to NCIS. He closed his eyes, trying to block out the sunlight, while he waited for the last of his headache to pass.

"Tony, do you remember what we discussed last night?" Gibbs asked as he turned onto the street before the Navy Yard.

"No."

"Do you remember why you wanted to come over then?"

"I wanted to tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"What happened on Monday. Did I tell you?"

"Yes, you told me."

"What did I say?"

"A lot. I think we need to have another chat before I do anything about it."

"I don't want you to do anything…"

"Sorry, but what you told me last night cannot go unchecked. Something needs to be done to put a stop to it."

Tony smiled. "Thank you for being so kind to me, Gibbs."

"Of course." Gibbs smiled back. "Let's go. We'll check for any cases, then go chat when we can."

McGee and Ziva were chatting away when Tony and Gibbs walked in. Tony went to say his usual hello, but stopped short when their conversation reached his ears. Sudden anger welled up inside Tony at their casual teasing of him, and he almost shouted at them. The only thing that stopped him was Gibbs' hand on his shoulder.

"Let them keep talking. The more I hear, the easier it is for me to deal with," whispered Gibbs into Tony's ear.

Tony nodded. He frowned as McGee mentioned that they should let Tony drive the van to the next scene so that they could do it again. He saw confusion on Gibbs' face at that statement, but Tony knew all too well what they were discussing. He hadn't mentioned that to Gibbs, he was sure of it, because if he had, Gibbs would have been at McGee and Ziva's throats right then.

"Good morning, you two," said Gibbs as he strode into the bull pen. "Any cases?"

"Nothing, boss," said McGee, quickly sobering up and changing the conversation.

"Good. Catch up on paperwork."

Tony took a deep breath and stepped up to his desk. He dropped his backpack next to the desk and sat down, still tired and a little intoxicated.

"DiNozzo, you finished the monthly expenditure report yet?" Gibbs asked, his tone back to being gruff, if only to stop the team from wondering why he was being nice to Tony.

"Finishing it now, boss," answered Tony as he pulled a file towards him.

"Good. I want it by the end of the day."

"Yes, boss."

It wasn't long before the teasing started again. As soon as Gibbs was out for coffee, McGee and Ziva turned to Tony.

"Did you enjoy our little adventure yesterday?" Ziva taunted.

"I sure found it fun," added McGee.

"Don't the two of you have work to finish?" Tony asked, trying hard to not let their words anger him.

"We'll do it when Gibbs comes back. Unless you want to do it for us?"

Tony ignored McGee's question. He put his head down on his desk, the headache from that morning beginning to return.

"Back to work, McGee, Ziva," said Gibbs a minute later. "DiNozzo, no sleeping on the job."

Tony glanced at Gibbs, his expression telling his boss everything the older man needed to know.

"Drink this, DiNozzo, it'll wake you up," Gibbs said a little more quietly as he placed a coffee cup on the desk.

"You got Tony coffee?" McGee asked incredulously.

"Since he stayed until pretty late last night, completing his paperwork, and didn't get any sleep last night, yes, I bought him coffee. I need my agents awake and alert, McGee."

"Thank you, boss," said Tony as he sipped the coffee and returned to his paperwork.

"DiNozzo, you finished that report?"

"Just signing it now." Tony handed the file to Gibbs.

"Good. Now you can follow me. Let's go."

Tony frowned, a little concerned about what was happening. He stood and followed obediently until they reached the conference room.